Axel

Chapter 259: Continuous Battles

Added 2025-02-12 14:09:01 +0000 UTC

Charlot Mecklenburg defeated three knight orders but did not wait for the enemy's "main force." He thought the commander of the Black Phoenix Dynasty might be plotting some special "scheme." In response, Charlot temporarily promoted the swift-scribe Italio Calvino to hold Interlaken while he himself left the city, taking with him a group of Labyrinth Beastman Guards and some members of the West Wind Knight Order to prepare for an ambush.

Charlot's military aptitude could not be considered average—rather, it was almost non-existent. His tactic was directly copied from Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Unbeknownst to Charlot, his maneuver startled the Black Phoenix Dynasty’s commander. The latter assumed Charlot was preparing for some grand operation. After all, Charlot had easily crushed three knight orders, proving his strength.

The Black Phoenix Dynasty dispatched another knight order, this one belonging to the royal family. Not only was it well-equipped, but its commander was also a high-ranking Transcendent.

One day later, Clair Bretagne received news of the battle at Interlaken and ordered Ebner Soumet to lead the Maple Leaf Knight Order into action.

The two sides maneuvered forces between seven or eight small towns, quickly descending into chaotic skirmishes. Charlot himself encountered two knight orders in succession. These forces were far superior to those he had faced before. Although Charlot managed to avoid major losses, he still suffered casualties of one to two hundred, which pained him greatly.

Charlot was certainly not a competent general, but he genuinely cared for his subordinates. After the two battles, he realized that both armies had fully committed their forces, with knight orders weaving through each other’s lines. He decided to retreat to Interlaken and temporarily withdraw from the chaos.

However, before Charlot could extract the West Wind Knight Order from combat, they were confronted by a royal main knight order of the Black Phoenix Dynasty. After a fierce battle, Charlot found himself trapped behind enemy lines, completely cut off from Interlaken.

While Charlot fretted over this, the main knight orders of the Black Phoenix Dynasty were equally alarmed. They had no idea Charlot had accidentally wandered into their rear during the skirmishes and assumed the bold Fars commander intended to outflank them.

Soon, one knight order relentlessly pursued Charlot’s West Wind Knight Order. Over a dozen fierce engagements followed. Charlot made several attempts to kill the knight order’s commander on the battlefield, but their duels—seven or eight in total—ended in stalemates, with neither gaining the upper hand.

This knight order was one of the royal main knight orders of the Black Phoenix Dynasty.

Among the five great empires, the size and scale of royal knight orders varied, but each boasted at least fifty or sixty knight orders, forming massive elite armies. Their main knight orders were the empire’s elite forces, incomparable to ordinary battle formations.

To be frank, even Clair Bretagne’s Purple Finch Knight Order and Maple Leaf Knight Order couldn’t match the soldier quality of the main knight orders of the great empires.

That Charlot could stand his ground against such a force astonished his opponents.

The commander of this royal knight order was a distant royal relative named Chloe Hadrian. Exceptionally talented and powerful, Chloe had already reached Transcendence before university and graduated as a Tier 4 Transcendent. Now in his early thirties, he was an exceptional high-ranking Transcendent knight, wielding his lance and spear skills with mastery. He had earned the Five Knight Proofs and was a formidable Tier 15 high-ranking knight.

Chloe had initially believed that no one in the Fars military—aside from Clair Bretagne or Ebner Soumet—could match him. Thus, he wasn’t afraid to duel Charlot.

However, after several battlefield duels, Chloe found himself exhilarated yet uneasy. Charlot showed no adherence to conventional chivalry, employing unpredictable and unconventional tactics. Twice, Chloe nearly believed he wouldn’t make it back home.

When Chloe once again caught up to Charlot’s West Wind Knight Order, he didn’t immediately attack. Instead, he ordered his soldiers to rest.

His knight order was nearing its limits after relentless pursuit and battle.

Chloe’s adjutant prepared him a meal. Following the Black Phoenix Dynasty’s dining customs, it wasn’t tea but a thick soup brewed with various ingredients. Regardless of the meal, the Black Phoenix Dynasty always included such a soup.

Chloe paired the soup with a dense wheat bread mixed with grains and nuts, eating heartily while occasionally furrowing his brows in thought, pondering how to defeat Charlot.

Chloe’s adjutant, a young woman from a lower noble family, maintained an impeccable appearance despite days of marching and fighting. Her hairstyle remained pristine, her military uniform spotless, and her imposing figure added to her air of authority. Seeing Chloe’s troubled expression, she consoled him, “Although the Fars commander is cunning and employs a group of enslaved beastman warriors, he is only a mid-tier Transcendent.”

“In the previous battles, he relied on tricks, not genuine strength.”

“I believe, Sir Chloe, that you’ll kill him next time on the battlefield.”

Chloe nodded slightly. Despite not gaining the upper hand in their encounters, he remained confident that once he saw through Charlot’s tricks, strength would prevail as the decisive factor.

At that moment, a messenger rushed over, shouting, “The enemy commander, Charlot Mecklenburg, is challenging you. He has come alone, with no accompanying troops.”

Chloe quickly finished his soup and stuffed the remaining bread into his mouth. “I’ll go meet him again.”

Grabbing his lance, he stepped out of the camp alone. Sure enough, Charlot was standing calmly between the two armies, waiting for him.

Chloe shouted, “Charlot, today you will die by my hand!”

Charlot smiled faintly and replied, “Chloe, this isn’t the first time you’ve made empty boasts.”

Charlot had faced high-ranking Transcendents before, even defeating opponents like Harriet Alva and Zolman. But there were differences among high-ranking Transcendents, and rank alone wasn’t the only measure of combat power.

In the Dreamcrafting realm, Charlot had been defeated by Hughes hundreds of times. Before acquiring the Red and Blue Rattlesnake Pistols, he had no confidence in challenging Hughes head-on. But with those pistols in hand, his confidence soared.

However, he hadn’t encountered Hughes again since.

The commander of the Black Phoenix Dynasty’s knight order was one of the most formidable opponents Charlot had faced.

Charlot relied on Swiftstep Technique ×10 to repeatedly salvage situations in his cross-rank challenges.

After some verbal sparring, Chloe suddenly lunged forward, his spear thrusting in a direct and clean line, his entire form gliding over the ground as though he were flying.