Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1768 - 1265: Convergence of Destiny—The Bravest Columbus Captured!

"How could it be the Castilian navy? How did they suddenly appear in Tagus Bay, and like madmen, crash toward the Portuguese Lisbon Port?... Lord! Could it be that the Dual Kings of Iberia and King João have gone to war again?"

Outside Lisbon Port, the large ships of Castile charged like bulls, with the Portuguese Navy in pursuit. Merchants' ships big and small scrambled to avoid them, like ants on a hot pot. The captains and sailors on the sea cursed vehemently, their faces filled with panic, as several ships collided with each other. On the shore, merchants and the nobility were astonished, stopping in their tracks to stare at this rare spectacle.

On a small building, old Knight Lorenzo clenched his fist, his expression grave. After conquerring the Moors on the Peninsula, the Dual Kings of Iberia now possess a military force unprecedented in size. The strength of this Castilian army far exceeds that of the Portuguese army. But if a large-scale war breaks out on the Peninsula, the Portuguese will not sit idle. The English will inevitably join the war as allies of Portugal, and the French will also be eager to participate, drawing in the Church and the Italian states...

"Lord! The City-State Republic does indeed wish to use the power of the Kingdom of Castile to pressure the Kingdom of Portugal's minting actions, as the power of gold coins must not fall into Portuguese hands... We are also willing to support the Castilians in colonizing the Southern Continent, bringing back gold for the commercial city-states... But a massive war on the Peninsula, an internal war of the Catholic World, is definitely not what we want right now!"

"No matter who wins or loses, the situation on the Peninsula will be completely altered, with a winner taking it all, making it impossible to maintain balance. And the Kingdom of Castile cannot simply repeat what they did to the Moors—judging heretics, capturing slaves, and extracting wealth from the Kingdom of Portugal of the same Catholic world... This war will lead to their financial collapse, preventing them from repaying us! Our debts will turn into terrible bad loans!"

Venetian concerns, like coastal reefs, cannot impede the surging tides. With the rolling waves, the fully-sailed Santa Maria charged full speed ahead like an arrow shot by a barbarian—battered and swaying, yet relentless. Behind it, a volatile light sailing ship from Portugal had already set up several matchlock guns, ready to fire at the "pirates" aboard the large ship, but was stopped by the flag-raising and identity-declaring act of the other side!

"Indeed, it's a Castilian spy ship! Truly cunning Castilian spies, slipping eastward under the cover of night, escaping the naval encirclement, even reaching the port of the Kingdom's navy! This is an outright provocation and a disgrace to the navy, which must be avenged with blood!... No, that's not right! This isn't the uncharted outer seas, nor the barbaric Southern Continent—this is the port of Lisbon!"

"Damn it! Haroldo, raise the gun muzzles, cease fire, stop! We can't just shoot the Castilian navy in front of so many eyes, potentially shooting nobility on their ship! This would cause significant trouble..."

On the light sailing ship, Bruno clenched the captain's sword tightly, standing angrily at the bow, staring hard at the stern of the Clark Galleon. Over a dozen Portuguese soldiers were holding matchlock guns, aiming at the enemy ship several steps away, yet they withheld fire.

"Damn it! Those mad Castilians will soon crash into the pier... Switch to scimitars, prepare to board! Try to take them alive!"

"Yes, Captain!"

On the Clark Galleon ahead, De La Cosa faced the smoking matchlock guns, his heart pounding as if standing at hell's gate. He couldn't help but swallow, turning to look at the bow of the large ship, where "Naval Commander" Columbus, standing tall, dressed in dirty yet vibrant noble garb gifted by the Queen, with the commander's sword at his side, firmly at the prow!

At that moment, De La Cosa could not see Columbus's pale face, nor his clenched teeth, trembling fingers, or sweat-soaked undergarments. He could only see the commander's proud silhouette, seemingly courageous and fearless—like the hero of the latest Valencian knight novel, leading the Byzantine army to defeat the Ottomans, "White Knight Tirant."

"Ah! Brave Commander Columbus... If only, as you say, we can somehow be ransomed by the Queen, escaping from Portuguese imprisonment... then you will forever be my commander! I promise to always hold you in highest regard, never plotting against your position!... Lord! Without enough fate, one truly cannot sit in the commander's chair of the Kingdom's exploration fleet..."

"Holy Mother! It's about to crash... it's about to hit..."

"Move away, move away!"

"No time to slow down... hold onto the ropes!"

"Wow! The Castilians can not only bullfight, but also shipfight!"

"Boom! Bang!... Crack!"

Amidst the crowd on the shore and the exclamations of captains and sailors, the Santa Maria Galleon finally crashed into the pier with a thunderous roar! The violent collision sent sailors across the ship tumbling to the deck, scattering like jugs. The piercing sound of breaking wood not only signaled the destruction of the pier but also the shattering of the ship's planks: the already burdened Clark Galleon had a gaping hole at its bow taking in water!

"Damn it! They actually smashed the port pier... Quick! Get closer! Get closer with all your might! I must capture these damned Castilian bandits and bring them before the King!"

Several steps away, Bruno shouted angrily, leading the fully armed naval soldiers, directing the light sailing ship straight toward the halted Santa Maria. Seeing this, it wouldn't be long before he could board the enemy ship and capture these brazen Castilian bandits...

"Cough cough! Pah! Merda! Vaffanculo! Pah pah!"

At the bow, Columbus struggled to his feet, spitting out blood and splinters from his mouth, while stringing together curses. And this process of cursing seemed like a priest's prayer ceremony, gradually giving him the courage to stand up desperately and bringing him stubborn and insane strength...

"Minchia! Diamine! I finally returned, I finally landed! Ahahaha! I finally brought back the news of the new route alive from the depths of the sea's purgatory! Ahahaha!..."

Columbus cursed, laughed, shouted, and even shed tears. He was like an obsessed madman, dancing on the cliff-like wrecked bow. He looked around the bustling Lisbon port, enjoying thousands of astonished gazes as if looking at a madman, as if he had returned to his true stage, as if he was back home!

"Quick! Jump onto the bow! Grab that Chinese-robed Castilla Captain!..." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Unfortunately, the time back home is always short, and the happy days are hard to last long... then let himself be a little happier, a little more crazy, let the entire Catholic world go mad with joy!...

At this moment, in front of the watching Lisbon public, in front of the astonished Venetian merchants, in front of the boarding Portuguese soldiers, in front of the resisting Castilla sailors, Columbus raised his head, took a deep breath. Then, he fiercely took out a scroll of sea charts and a piece of shining gold from his tightly-covered chest! He raised his hands high with the secret of the Western New Route in his left hand and the wealth of Xipangu Island in his right hand, shouting frantically and fervently with all the strength in his chest at the thousands of people in the port.

"I, Don Christopher Columbus, am the Naval Commander of Castile, the first Great Navigator to reach the East! I discovered a new route to the East, just in the west of the Atlantic Ocean!..."

"Under the orders of the Queen, I reached Cipangu Island in Japan, where gold and silver are everywhere! I dedicate the new route to the East and the territories discovered and occupied in the East to the great and glorious Queen Isabella!..."

"Ahahaha! I am the first to discover the Eastern New Route! My name will be forever engraved in history, surpassing countless foolish Portuguese scholars, surpassing all Portuguese sea captains, better than all of you imbecile idiots!..."

Columbus shouted loudly, wildly crying out like a madman! He first shouted once in Portuguese, leaving everyone watching at the port dumbfounded. Then he shouted once in Spanish, loudly praising the wisdom of the Queen, bringing tears to the eyes of the surviving Castilian sailors. Lastly, he shouted loudly in his native Italian, shocking the Jewish merchants and Venetian knights watching from afar, their mouths gaping wide, turning into giraffes of the Southern Continent...

Before the boarding Portuguese soldiers rushed in, De La Cosa quickly descended to the cabin, caught the only surviving Taino villager from days of evasion and escape, the "smart Shushu," and brought him to the deck. Then, he grabbed Shushu's hair, revealing a yellow-skinned face, vastly different from the crowd at the port, a face terrified to the extreme, and loudly shouted to all the onlookers.

"Yes, the Almighty is witnessing! We traveled thousands of kilometers west, reaching Cipangu Island in Japan and brought back the natives from there! Look! He is a yellow-skinned native! He is an Eastern Indian native! He looks different from all of us!..."

"Ahahaha! I, Don Christopher Columbus, discovered the new route to the East! Ahahaha!... Uh! Ah..."

"Bang!..."

Bruno fiercely kicked Columbus, who was frantically shouting, down to the deck. Then, he turned the hilt of his sword and struck hard on Columbus's only remaining ear, making him shut up from pain. Finally, he tore out a dirty rag and stuffed it into Columbus's mouth, turning this noisy, self-proclaimed discoverer of the new route Great Navigator into a silent captive prisoner. Then, his fierce gaze turned to De La Cosa, who was holding the Taino villager...

"Ah! I surrender, I surrender!"

De La Cosa voluntarily let go, squatted down, and surrendered. Boatswain Haroldo took out ropes and expertly tied him up, stuffing his mouth tightly. Over a dozen Portuguese soldiers surrounded the surviving crew on the ship, each tying one up, sealing their mouths, including Shushu, who had already collapsed in trembling at the sight of countless 'white-skinned demons'...

"Quick! Block all the mouths tightly! Then take them all down! ...Search the entire ship thoroughly, take away all suspicious items, take them away!..."

Bruno shouted harshly, although they had captured the fleeing large ship and all the crew, his face didn't look good. After ordering his men, he looked at the densely populated port, at those unyielding, closely watching eyes, at the various accents, the bustling discussions... At this moment, only one thought remained in his mind, a helpless sigh.

"Holy Mother! So many people watching! Damn it, this naval operation this time... really botched it!..."

"No matter if the nonsense of this lunatic Columbus is true or false... today's news surely can't be covered up!"

"The Almighty witnesses! Ride east swiftly, within ten days... the Castilians will know that we have detained one of their Clark galleons and captured their damn 'Admiral' who discovered the damn new route!..."