Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 275 Iron-Blooded Warhorse
After leaving the tower, Sumu returned to the parliament hall to hear the remaining government reports.

Su Mu has high hopes for Cedros and is willing to invest more in him. Even though the Astrologer is currently of little use and may even require wasting combination treasures, he will be very valuable in the future.

Besides, since Su Mu promised Cederos to help him get back on the path of magic, he will definitely do it. Adding flowers to brocade is far less helpful than providing charcoal in the snow.

Putting himself in her shoes, Sederlos was filled with hesitation and confusion at this moment. Even his renewed confidence was fragile and he needed Su Mu's help.

As a lord, you should lend a helping hand to your subordinates when they are in their most difficult times, not only when everything is going smoothly. Doing so at best makes you a superior, but it doesn't win people's hearts.

To build an invincible army, your generals must be loyal and attentive to your command; this is fundamental.

He also heard about the deeds of the two cavalry commanders, but with war approaching, he didn't have much energy to pay attention to them, and the cavalry force had reached its limit and could no longer be expanded.

Due to his previous performance, Pelayo gained control of most of the cavalry, which, although only a few dozen men, was still a powerful force.

Pelayo led his men to sweep away the surrounding monsters and strike down fleeing bandits, making a great contribution to maintaining order and earning Forrest's praise on several occasions.

But for Kuraki, these things were trivial matters, usually handled by Wayne's thieves, who did a very good job.

A dignified Tier 6 military unit doing odd jobs and tiring tasks, appearing very busy, but actually not achieving much.

As time went on, the cavalry became somewhat impatient, feeling underutilized. Pelayo, influenced by the others, also felt that the cavalry should be doing more important things.

To follow their lord to the battlefield or to fight on the front lines—these were the important things they wanted to do.

Forrest thought it would be good to give them some experience, so he sent Pelayo with his troops to Graystone City to await orders.

Having a fast-moving unit like cavalry makes it much easier to pursue the enemy.

Upon hearing the cause and details of the incident, Su Mu did not offer any further comment.

The reality is that Kuraki currently lacks an equestrian training ground and cannot provide a sufficient number of cavalry troops. While cavalry commanders are indeed rare, they are far inferior to heroes specializing in cavalry. Out of respect for Raven, Su Mu will grant the two commanders preferential treatment, but not many special privileges.

He needs his leaders to utilize their strengths and bring value to Kuraki, rather than arranging everything for them to grow step by step.

Since Pelayo feels there is room for him to make a difference on the battlefield, then he should go to the front lines and demonstrate his abilities.

Lords and dukes have always been known for their valor on horseback, and on the battlefield, everyone is equal; perhaps a new breakthrough will be achieved. If Pelayo can be promoted to hero, Sumu will sell everything he owns to provide him with a cavalry unit.

The other potential leader, Goode, was in a completely opposite situation.

He didn't care at all about being neglected or assigned meaningless tasks. He continued his daily training at the horse farm, performing 3000 charges without fail, and successfully rose to the rank of cavalry commander.

Goode's leadership skills are geared towards charging. Knowing that he lacks versatility, he specializes in the knight's charge skills, maximizing their effectiveness, and gradually achieving results.

After developing the magnificent warhorse, Su Mu specifically asked Forrest to allocate a sum of money so that Goode could focus on researching the warhorse.

However, due to the busy war, Su Mu did not pay much attention to this matter. Even after obtaining the source blood from Liliana's subordinates, he simply sent troops to deliver it and did not inquire about it further.

If someone is overly thoughtful, they might feel that Su Mu is being hypocritical and not truly taking things seriously.

Goode, however, was different. He was truly dedicated to the research of warhorses and equestrianism, and all the funding was used for warhorse training and the synthesis of source blood.

Due to the unique effects of the source blood, ordinary horses simply cannot withstand the fusion.
Iron-blooded warhorses exist only in theory and are difficult to realize in reality. Even with the enhancement of advanced civil engineering skills in Kuraki's stables, it can only be tested step by step.

Hundreds of warhorses died during the process, incurring considerable expenses, but Goode didn't care at all. Even with unsatisfactory results and the initial funding failing to materialize, Goode continued breeding warhorses. He even made a special trip to Forrest to request financial assistance, offering to do other work to subsidize the effort.

Upon hearing this, Forrest immediately reprimanded his men and continued to allocate funds to support them.

As Su Mu's confidant, Forrest knew all too well how much the lord valued the stables. It could be said that swordsmen represented the present, and knights represented the future; no amount of money was too much to invest.

Forrest also comforted Goode, telling him to focus on nurturing the child.

Goode didn't care about any of that; once he got the money, he continued to invest in breeding warhorses.

After numerous failed experiments, he finally discovered the pattern. The Divine Steed sacrificed defense to increase speed, which was essentially a loss of health, making it unable to withstand the more violent source blood.

Therefore, we need to increase the horse's health and defense at level 2 so that we can continue to advance to the next level.

So he bred a Tier 2 warhorse called the Fat and Strong Horse. Although the name was rather vulgar, it was very useful.

【Strong and Well-built Horse (Tier 2 Warhorse): Knights riding this warhorse (including advanced units) gain +10 health and +2 defense.

Training cost: 300 gold coins per horse.

Assessment: This type of horse doesn't have any major advantages; its main strengths are its large appetite, high speed, and abundant stamina.

For cavalry, this amount of health and defense is insignificant, but the horse's attributes alone can increase the overall health by 10, which shows the boost to stamina.

Building on the success of the horse, Goode continued his research, mixing the source blood into the feed to allow the horses to gradually get used to it, and then applying some of the source blood to their coats so that it would seep into their pores through evaporation while they were running, thus achieving a gradual absorption.

The process was certainly not smooth, and many strong horses died along the way, but under Goode's training, one horse finally succeeded in advancing to the next level.

【Iron-Blooded Warhorse (Tier 3 Warhorse): Knights riding this warhorse (including advanced units) gain +20 health, +4 defense, and +30% attack-based health regeneration.

Training cost: 900 gold coins per horse.

Evaluation: Riding a warhorse, one's blood boils; fueled by blood, one battles across thousands of miles.

A brilliant idea!
Su Mu had never realized before that Goode possessed such talent in warhorse breeding.

Or rather, Goode's greatest talent was his ability to concentrate his will and persevere.

While others find the same task tedious and boring, he can repeat it hundreds or thousands of times to find the most suitable method.

The hardships and obstacles involved are self-evident. The most difficult part is maintaining focus no matter what situation he encounters; his will is fearless.

Goode is a lone knight, charging at the windmill.

This is the best interpretation of a knight.

Judging from their current performance, Pelayo is merely an elite knight, while Goode is the true knight.

Su Mu asserted, "Good will definitely become a knightly hero!"

(End of this chapter)