Axel

Chapter 449: The Shame of the Legendary Warship Dolmabahçe!

Added 2025-05-18 15:09:01 +0000 UTC

Ardosa Mesu found herself in an awkward position. After all, the Duchess Mesu had already betrayed the Fars Empire, pledging allegiance to Byron. Hence, when Charlot Mecklenburg and the Fars Royal Knights combined forces, she sought out Charlot to bid her farewell.

Charlot’s attitude towards his senior was notably cordial. Firstly, the Mecklenburg and Mesu families had entered into an alliance as friendly families. Secondly, Charlot’s territory would inevitably border the northern lands of the Mesu family, necessitating future exchanges and fostering goodwill.

In accordance with their agreement, Charlot handed over a magical alchemical warship to Ardosa. Additionally, he gifted her ten more warships and a contingent of Black Phoenix navy soldiers who refused to surrender to Fars.

Although Ardosa was clearly intrigued by Charlot, she recognized that this was not the right time to make any overt moves. Instead, she arranged to meet him again in the future and presented him with a gift—an overseas relic she had acquired: a statue of an evil god.

The incident where Charlot had torn apart over a dozen ancient paintings to summon the Labyrinth God Agmirlas was shrouded in secrecy. Though everyone who witnessed it tacitly avoided speaking of it, they all suspected that Charlot might have a peculiar fondness for such items.

Indeed, many nobles shared an interest in such artifacts, though they dared not display their fascination openly, mindful of the Nine True Gods’ watchful patrols over this world.

After Ardosa departed with her saint-rank followers, Charlot felt a strange sense of relief. He soon received a new appointment—not from Fars, but from the Four-Nation Alliance. He was named the Supreme Coordinator of the Black Phoenix Partition Conference, tasked with overseeing the reception of high-ranking officials from various nations.

Although Emperor Alfred Guillaume of Bretagne had participated in the war, it was deemed inappropriate for him to attend the conference. Fars was instead represented by Count D’Artagnan, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Count Gallanord, the Minister of War—an impressive delegation.

Ingrima’s representative was Count Lamorak, known as the Count of Victory Champagne. Deeply dissatisfied with the war’s outcome, he was particularly resentful that Fars had seized the spoils of victory, including the twelve core administrative provinces of Black Phoenix. He firmly advocated for an equitable partition.

Byron sent familiar faces, both to Emperor Alfred and Charlot. One was Juno Arthur, Byron’s greatest warrior and a mentor Charlot had to address respectfully as “Teacher.” The other was Viscount Constantine, the newly appointed Byron noble and the former strongest fighter of the Black Phoenix Dynasty.

This former Black Phoenix champion had once been defeated head-on by Yannick Hadrian.

Lionheart’s representative turned out to be equally serendipitous, as Charlot knew them well. The envoy was Crown Prince Brunel Asa, accompanied by his adjutant, Konro, another acquaintance of Charlot.

With so many familiar faces, even Count Lamorak—who had never met Charlot—was favorably inclined towards him due to Ban Lamorak’s influence. Ban, after being defeated by Charlot, had secluded himself for nearly a year before successfully breaking through to the saint rank. For the elder Lamorak, his son’s advancement far outweighed the loss of a duel or even the cherished Whale Slayer spear. He now hoped Ban could rival Antonio in ten years and reclaim his family’s honor.

Thanks to these personal connections, Charlot encountered little trouble arranging the representatives for the Four-Nation Alliance negotiations. Though Charlot lacked expertise in noble etiquette, Emperor Alfred had assigned his son Antonio as an assistant. A seasoned noble, Antonio deftly supplemented Charlot’s shortcomings.

When all the delegates arrived in Black Phoenix City and settled in, Charlot felt as though he had been flayed alive. Dealing with the top powerhouses from each nation daily was an unrelenting source of pressure.

Despite his personal ties to several representatives—some of whom he shared close bonds with, such as Juno Arthur and Crown Prince Brunel Asa—the burden did not lessen. When national interests came into play, personal relationships became insignificant as stones by the roadside.

Before the conference officially began, Charlot found himself with a brief respite. Taking the opportunity, he decided to indulge himself by visiting a legendary warship.

Yes, Black Phoenix had its own legendary warship, docked at the city’s port. When Charlot had launched his surprise assault on Black Phoenix City, leaving it defenseless, he captured the legendary warship Dolmabahçe, along with six magical alchemical warships.

This was the last remnant of the Black Phoenix navy.

The Dolmabahçe had earned a moniker: the Shame of the Legendary Warships.

Despite Black Phoenix’s efforts to create a maritime fortress, the Dolmabahçe turned out to be a floating palace designed for imperial cruises. It surpassed any historical warship in luxury, yet its combat capability...

It had once been captured in a direct confrontation.

The captor was the Duke Felix Robin, Fars’ greatest military genius a century ago and the father of the current Grand Duke Robin.

Though the Black Phoenix navy had heroically reclaimed the ship later, the nickname stuck.

During the recent war, Black Phoenix had not dared deploy this ship in battle. Its actual combat strength was barely superior to an ordinary magical alchemical warship and would struggle against two or three such vessels.

For Charlot Mecklenburg, however, this posed no issue.

Finally, he had a legendary warship he could take pride in. What more could he ask for?

When Charlot boarded the Dolmabahçe, he felt a surge of excitement. The colossal vessel rivaled the Radiant Holy Kingdom ship in size and was as opulent as a palace. Its towering superstructure exuded grandeur, surpassing even some of the most majestic terrestrial palaces.

The Dolmabahçe had served as a summer palace for Black Phoenix emperors, who would retreat to the ship to escape the heat.

Charlot had long considered who should command this legendary ship. He decided to entrust it to the Flame Combat Energy Knight Viggo.

Although the Dolmabahçe’s combat capabilities were limited, it offered unparalleled accommodations, perfect for Viggo, who was “recovering from injuries.” Charlot certainly wasn’t dismissing Viggo’s combat strength—definitely not.