Chapter 426: The World or Gareth—One of Them Must Be Broken

Antonio looked at Charlot with an expression as if he had just seen an Evil God. He racked his brain, yet he couldn’t comprehend such a brazen idea.

Gareth, an elder among warriors, wasn’t much younger than Duke Rembrandt Mossred. In fact, he was two or three years older than Cresto and five or six years older than Midaphis.

Yes, perhaps even older than Charlot's biological father.

Antonio, unfortunately, wasn’t a transmigrator. Otherwise, he would certainly have thought of phrases like: “This scoundrel is truly unfilial...”

Gareth looked utterly confused and asked, “You’re my father? Then who am I?”

Charlot replied with righteous conviction, “Gareth Mecklenburg!”

“You are Gareth Mecklenburg, the only son of me, Charlot Mecklenburg!”

“You were once the sole heir to the Mecklenburg earldom, but you renounced your inheritance to pursue martial arts. Still, my son, you will always be welcome here!”

If Antonio hadn’t been standing nearby, Charlot would probably have fabricated a mother for Gareth as well.

Hmm, Annie wouldn’t quite fit, but the senior apprentice? That could work!

If not, then perhaps Princess May or Miss Sophia Gallanord?

After all, they’d never meet. This clumsy lie wouldn’t easily be exposed.

But with Antonio present, Charlot dared not embellish further, leaving the story with a glaring flaw.

Hearing his name, Gareth found it strangely familiar. When he looked at Antonio and Charlot, he found Antonio more familiar, but Antonio seemed far too young...

As he gazed at Charlot, a peculiar image popped into his mind—a silvery snake’s tail thrashing wildly.

This small snake seemed to be celebrating something ecstatic beyond measure.

Hmm, an absurd yet entirely reasonable thought formed in Gareth’s mind: “My father is surprisingly youthful.”

After hesitating for a moment, he called out, “Dad!”

Charlot, feigning a fatherly demeanor, patted Gareth on the head and said gently, “My son! During your battle with the Flame Evil God Anururu, you were gravely injured. I cannot describe how deeply I worried for you!”

“Now that you’re awake, we must thank the Serpent of Fate properly!”

“Later, I will take you to the Temple of the Serpent of Fate. Be prepared to offer the best tribute.”

Gareth nodded slowly. The silver snake tail in his mind suddenly stiffened, trembled uncontrollably, then resumed thrashing even more wildly than before.

Antonio, watching all this, was filled with an unshakable certainty: either this world or Gareth himself was broken!

He chose not to expose Charlot, waiting instead until Charlot finished comforting his “son.” Then, lowering his voice, he asked, “What if he regains his memory?”

Charlot shrugged. “If he does, then so be it. After all, I’ve already gained something.”

“Besides, having one’s soul shattered by an Evil God isn’t something that heals easily...”

Charlot’s mind immediately recalled an exception—his own case. His soul had been torn apart in the battle between two Evil Gods yet had fully recovered.

Still, he dismissed the thought quickly. Who cared? He’d already gained an advantage, so why worry?

Antonio posed a second question: “What if someone tells him the truth about his identity?”

Charlot laughed heartily. “No need to worry. I’ll craft a novel tailored just for him. The people of this world will believe he’s my son!”

“A few doubters won’t be able to overturn the narrative.”

“This world doesn’t even have fanfiction.”

Antonio didn’t understand terms like “doubters” or “fanfiction,” but Charlot’s reasoning seemed sound. When someone’s story is written into a bestselling novel, even outsiders would believe it, let alone someone deliberately influenced.

He looked at Gareth with pity. “I hope you won’t make his fictional childhood too miserable.”

“His adulthood is already destined to be tragic.”

“At least let his childhood be happy, even if it’s fake.”

Charlot readily agreed. With just a few words, the two decided on Gareth’s blissful childhood. Charlot even planned to give him a unique trait: as a child, Gareth would often be taken home by elder sisters, who would “bathe” him and feed him delicious “buns.”

Who could say such a childhood wasn’t happy?

...

Even though Gareth had lost his memory and was thoroughly manipulated by Charlot, neither Charlot nor Antonio dared to send him to the battlefield.

Antonio prepared to launch an attack on the Mossred Duchy. Charlot had no objections. Without the Evil God’s protection, Mossred was “vulnerable.”

The two rested briefly for two days, then mobilized their respective knightly orders to launch another campaign against the Mossred Duchy.

During this time, neither sent out scouts due to limited forces. So, when they arrived at the Kingdom of Oslo’s coalition camp, only to find ruins, they were utterly shocked. They had never anticipated that Mossred would flee.

They pressed into the Mossred Duchy with ease, encountering almost no resistance.

Soon, their duties were divided: Antonio led two knightly orders to besiege towns and claim the remaining noble territories, while Charlot stayed in the rear, accepting the surrender of local militias and confiscating the wealth of rebellious nobles.

In just over a month, they had conquered the entire Kingdom of Oslo. Antonio finally understood why Charlot’s West Wind Knight Order was so large. Charlot had tapped into every ounce of Oslo’s war potential, converting it into an enormous commercial empire.

News quickly reached them that Mossred had fled to the Black Phoenix Dynasty.

Hearing this, the two held a brief moment of silence for the Duke of Fars. Then, they began preparations to return to Strasbourg.

The Bretagne Emperor’s Coronation was imminent, and as key figures in the ceremony, their attendance was essential.

Charlot took all the troops conscripted from the Kingdom of Oslo and sent them to South Seraph, leaving the administration of the Mossred Duchy to Antonio.

The Earl of Bretagne had already promised Charlot the territory of South Seraph. Taking the Mossred Duchy as well would be excessive, especially since Charlot was set to claim parts of the Black Phoenix Dynasty in the future. Giving the Mossred Duchy to Antonio would strengthen his position in the Bretagne Dynasty, offering great benefits.

After all, was there any investment more rewarding than bribing the future emperor?

Antonio was destined to become the Emperor of Fars.

As they departed, they encountered a messenger from Strasbourg urging them to hasten their return for the coronation.

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