Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology - Chapter 1149

Capítulo 1149: The Portuguese and the Spanish angle

Eastern Mediterranean

Supreme Commander Don Francisco de Oquendo y Zandategui, the Leader of the Spanish Armada Real (The Spanish Navy), stood on deck and looked at the distant horizon where various warships could be seen with a hint of confusion.

Personally, Francisco was against joining the European coalition to take on the Bharatiya Empire. Unfortunately, he was not the one who could decide that. He could still remember the conversation he had with the monarch half a day ago.

“Are you sure, my liege?” Francisco asked, doubt clear in his eyes as he continued, “We still depend on the Bharatiya Empire for many things. Could you please reconsider?” He tried his best to reason with the emperor, choosing his words carefully.

But the old king, Charles, simply shook his head in refusal. “You do not need to convince me anymore, Francisco. Just do as I say.” His eyes flickered with calculation as he added in a low voice, “We have already received intelligence that the Bharatiya Navy has abandoned the Aegean Sea and the various bases it once held. They are now cornered at the canal they themselves created.”

“They are facing a coalition of four navies. Their chances of victory are slim, so this is the perfect moment for us to reap the rewards without doing the real fighting.”

“Heh heh,” Charles laughed softly, unable to hide his eagerness. “Once we secure a major stake in the canal, I will gain direct access to the Indian Ocean. And that is not all, I have already negotiated for a share of Anatolia once everything is said and done.”

Francisco was dumbfounded, and his mouth was agape. He was at a loss for words. But he also somewhat understood why his majesty became so eager to turn against the Bharatiya Empire all of a sudden, but being an emperor, shouldn’t the monarch see past all the benefits and look at the bigger picture?

Looking at the old emperor and then at the crown prince, as well as the ministers beside him, he understood. He understood now that the senseless thoughts did not originate from the king himself; they had been put into the head of the emperor in his old age by the incompetent prince and the stupid ministers.

Unwilling to give up, he tried to reason once again. “While what you say is true, Your Majesty, please consider this: the Mediterranean Defence Fleet of the Bharatiya Empire is only one of their four fleets, and even then, it is the weakest among them. Yet, to defeat even this weakest fleet, a four-nation naval coalition has been formed. Also, please consider that they still possess the Pacific Fleet, the Indian fleet and the Atlantic Fleet.”

“Even if you put aside the Pacific Fleet and the Indian Fleet, since they are geographically almost impossible to mobilise in time, please do consider that the Bharatiyas can always mobilise their Atlantic Fleet, which has a strong presence along the west coast of Africa, and sail straight for Gibraltar.”

Alfonso gave a brief pause so that the Emperor would have time to think about the scenario, then continued. “Please also consider that our logistic channels from Europe to the Americas are not strong enough to replace the material support and trade we receive from the Bharatiya Empire. The rapid development of our overseas territories in the Americas depends almost entirely on those resources.”

“As retaliation, the Bharatiyas could completely freeze trade, or worse, they could even attack those territories.” His eyes were filled with worry, and a hint of pleading crept into his voice. “We do not even have a navy capable of properly defending the western coast of the Americas if something were to happen. So please reconsider, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor fell silent, and looking at it, Francisco felt happy, thinking that he had succeeded, but the next moment his expression turned stiff.

“Respected count, why do you sound like you are siding with the Bharatiya Empire despite being born in Spain and being trained by the Habsburg dynasty?” Francisco’s eyebrows immediately jumped. He was in disbelief. Was he now being accused of being under the payroll of the Bharatiya Empire? ‘How dare he?’ He thought to himself as he was fuming with rage, but he did not react like he wanted to because the discordant and annoying voice was from the Crown Prince of the Spanish throne, Prince Juan Jose de Austria y Bourbon.

Charles frowned. He realised that his son had gone too far, so he glared at him and warned him sternly. “Jose, hold your tongue in control, don’t let it loose.”

“My apologies, Your Majesty,” Juan Jose said, wearing a regretful expression as he bowed before the emperor. Yet Francisco, who should have felt relieved that the emperor had taken his side, felt no such comfort. He could sense that the prince’s apology was not sincere, and worse, the emperor had merely warned the prince for speaking nonsense, without any sign of reconsidering the decision.

With that realisation, the heat in Francisco’s heart was extinguished. He grew numb, resigned to accept the command and carry out his duties to the best of his ability.

The prince continued to spout all kinds of nonsense, saying things like, “If the Bharatiyas have an Atlantic Fleet, don’t we have one as well?” and “If the Bharatiyas stop supplying the Americas, our industries and businessmen will receive more orders and more business, so it is not a loss but a win.”

All of it could be refuted easily. The Bharatiya Atlantic Fleet alone was strong enough to contend with more than three European navies by itself, and unlike others, there was nothing that truly constrained Bharatiya naval movement in the Atlantic. And once Bharatiya supplies stopped, Spain simply could not produce machines of the same quality at the same price. The result would not be growth, but economic strain, shrinking markets, and possibly even a recession. But at this point, he had the attitude of why bother, I do not get paid enough for this shit.

Coming back to his senses, he shook his head with a look of disappointment. “So how come you joined in on the fun as well?” Francisco asked the man standing right next to him.

The middle-aged man, with a burly build and an air of sophistication, was none other than the Supreme Commander of the Portuguese Armada (the Portuguese Navy), Dom João da Costa.

“Fun, huh?” Dom chuckled, but it was a chuckle filled with schadenfreude.

“It is partially thanks to your Spanish Kingdom.”

“Huh!” Francisco was surprised. “How come?”

“His Majesty received intelligence that you Spaniards would also be participating in the attack against the Bharatiyas. After some hesitation, he decided to join.”

“But wasn’t His Majesty Alfonso part of the inauguration ceremony, and don’t you Portuguese already have a stake in the Suez Canal? Now you are attacking the Bharatiyas with us. How does that work?”

“Heh heh,” João da Costa chuckled and shook his head. “That’s actually the main reason for his majesty’s decision, you know?”

“Apparently, on the day of the inauguration, His Majesty realised just how important the canal was, both strategically and economically. He wanted the kingdom to have a stake in it, no matter what. It would have been fine if the coalition formed by the English, Dutch, French, and Italians, by the way, when I got the news about the Italians actually joining the coalition and being the first one to attack, I was quite surprised; I even spit out the wine I was drinking, a close ally and one of the first to have a diplomatic relation had actually betrayed the Bharatiya Empire.”

“Anyway, coming back to the point, it would have been one thing if these four nations had lost against the Bharatiyas, but the news is that they forced the Bharatiya Navy to abandon the Aegean Sea and the Strait of Marmara on the very first day. And not only that, they managed to corner the Bharatiya Navy around the Suez Canal.”

“That, adding to the fact that we got the intelligence about your Spanish Navy making a move, his Highness Alfonso completely came to the conclusion that the Bharatiya Navy would not be able to make a comeback, so he decided to join in on the so-called ‘fun’, in order to keep the stake which was already ours.” He shrugged in helplessness.

Francisco nodded in understanding, but he could not help but ask, “Didn’t his Highness Alfonso think about the relations with the Bharatiya Empire with respect to the Americas?”

‘Sigh.’

It was as if merely hearing the question drained all his strength. João da Costa looked worn and defeated. “I don’t know who whispered what into His Majesty’s ear, but somehow he became convinced that the Bharatiyas would keep business separate from conflict, that they would settle matters only where the problems arose. His Majesty truly believes the Bharatiyas wouldn’t throw away money in one place just because we oppose them in another.” His expression darkened sharply. “Which asshole put that idea into his head? If I ever find him, I’ll choke him to death.”

He let out a bitter scoff. “Can’t he understand that the eastern hemisphere works on an entirely different mindset? They only deal with you when everything is well. Easterners don’t trade with someone they consider an enemy just because there’s profit to be made. And as if the Bharatiya Empire is short on money.”

“What if it was the Crown Prince who suggested it?” Francisco asked suddenly.

“Even if it was the Crown Pr—” João da Costa stopped mid-sentence. A thought struck him, and his eyes narrowed. ‘Why is he asking that?’ Realisation dawned a moment later. “Wait… are you saying His Highness Charles made this decision because of the prince?”

“…”

Francisco did not open his mouth, but in this situation, silence is affirmation.

“Pffff.” João da Costa broke into laughter. When he set off from Lisbon, he was a little depressed, but talking with this old friend, and especially hearing how bad he had it, he felt that his body was reenergised. It was extremely comfortable knowing that someone else was more miserable than you.

Francisco’s expression turned dark. “I really envy you. At least your monarch could see that the Bharatiya Empire cannot be replaced in the Americas, but my king? Sigh.”

“Wait!” João da Costa suddenly looked at Francisco. “His Highness Charles actually thought that he could replace the Bharatiya Empire in the Americas?”

“…”

“Pffff. HAHAHAH.” João da Costa broke out into an uproar.

A few minutes later.

“Thanks for improving my mood. Your situation is really more miserable than mine. Good luck, I am going back.”

“…”

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