Knight Lords: Infinite Simulation and the Path of Light

Chapter 183 Winter at the Arma Line

"Captain! Captain! The squad is assembled."

Baron Raven, who has been at the Ammar defense line for almost two months, is now a squad leader in the third company of the first battalion of the third scout regiment of the White Lion. As a minor nobleman, Raven could have had better options, and he could have even joined the White Lion Legion's construct knights directly by saving Haven. However, Raven ultimately rejected the offer.

In Raven's words, young master Havent was already doing his best to preserve his dignity, and the rest of his dignity had to be earned by himself. That's why he came to the Scout Group based on his abilities, level, and fighting style.

Hearing his subordinate's voice, Raven picked up his sword and walked out of the house. As soon as he stepped outside, the dry, cold air made Raven, whose face was still wet with water, shiver. He looked up at the tall Arma defense line in the distance and exhaled a long breath of hot air.

Compared to two months ago, LaVine now appears more mature. His once fair complexion has turned tanned, but his eyes have become even brighter.

"Oh, let's go. Those orc bastards have been appearing on the outskirts more and more frequently lately. Tell the brothers to go to the armory and get everything replenished. Don't be stingy, or you'll lose your life, and all the points you have will be useless."

"Oh, okay, Captain. The brothers have already redeemed their points. Let me tell you, after this mission, I'll have two thousand points, which is ten thousand gold coins. Hahahaha, I plan to go home, buy some land, build a big courtyard, and live like a lord after my service ends."

Looking at the captain dressed in a set of exquisitely crafted, enchanted leather armor, Raven couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.

As a veteran who had served on the Amma defense line for ten years, Akan served as an ordinary garrison soldier in Amma for the first seven years until three years ago when Akan's personal strength finally reached the baseline requirement of level fourteen for the front-line troops.

It is commendable that when this old guy was able to join the main force, he actually chose the reconnaissance unit, which had the highest mortality rate at the time. Normally, the average survival time of a reconnaissance soldier is eight months, but Akan seemed to be blessed by the goddess of fortune, miraculously surviving one conflict after another.

"Hahaha~ That's great! You'll be living near Whiterun. Young Master Haven is a great heir, so living in Whiterun is definitely a good choice for you."

The two walked side by side toward the operations division, chatting as they handed their squad's unit number to the staff.

"Today your squad will be heading to region 111-37 for reconnaissance. According to feedback from the previous reconnaissance squad, there are signs of a large number of orc troops moving in this region. You need to find out roughly what kind of orcs they are, their type, the direction they are heading, their numbers, and so on."

For specific mission requirements, please refer to the detailed mission description. The reward for this mission is 300 points. If you encounter a large orc army, prioritize evacuation.

After listening to the staff's brief description, Raven opened the parchment scroll and examined it carefully. After confirming that there were no problems, he nodded to the staff and left the operations division.

"Phew~~~ Captain, it's really cold this year~"

The Raven squad, which had already left the Arma Line, rode warhorses that were crossbred with Abe horses. These horses were not as tall or powerful as normal warhorses, but their advantage was that, after crossbreeding, they were well adapted to the extreme weather in the North and the work of scouts.

The reconnaissance team, camouflaged in white, blended almost seamlessly into the surrounding snow from a distance. The broom-like objects trailing behind the last few horses completely erased any traces of their passage.

We were now about fifty kilometers away from the Amar defense line, and had entered a neutral zone. As a buffer zone between the two sides, it was perfectly normal to encounter small groups of orcs here.

For the scouts on both sides, the vast majority of encounters and the vast majority of squad annihilation occur in the neutral zone.

This place was aptly described by the scouts on both sides as a meat grinder for the scouts and a grinding stone for the army's tentacles.

"Be careful, everyone. We've arrived at the border. In comparison, the orcs perform better than us in some harsh environments."

The team of twenty people moved like ghosts, quickly traversing the snowfield. After riding for another half hour, they arrived at the location described in the mission description.

The biting wind blew the snow on the ground into a hard ice shell. The sound of crunching underfoot echoed as the group walked on the snow. A dozen meters away, there were large, chaotic footprints that reflected a blinding light in the sunlight.

Raven walked to the footprints, took off his thick gloves, and touched them. The footprints had become unusually hard, and looked to be at least two or three days old.

"Captain~ Captain~~ Over here~~~"

Hearing his men's shouts, Raven stood up, shook the ice water off his hands, and walked over to them.

"What's wrong, Huffman?"

Huffman wiped his nose with his arm with difficulty, and the bright snot froze into an ice band the moment it left his nasal cavity.

"Captain, I've spotted some tire tracks ahead. Would you like to come and take a look?"

Following Huffman, Raven crossed a small snow-covered hill and was immediately greeted by a dozen wide ruts and many more footprints of various styles.

"Damn it, this looks like a whole orc transport corps has passed by. Judging by the depth of the ruts, damn it! It looks like an orc corps escorting military supplies."

"Captain, what do we do next? Everyone has already searched the surrounding area, and there are basically no other clues. Should we go back or continue investigating?"

Raven followed the messy footprints to the distant hillside. Reason told him that they had completed their reconnaissance mission and there was no problem returning to the Amar Line. However, a sense of unease rising from the depths of his heart constantly urged Raven on.

After much hesitation, Raven made his choice, rubbing his hands vigorously on his numb, frozen cheeks, his gaze fixed on the end of the footprints.
"Let's go, let's go take a look. It's very unusual for such a large orc transport caravan to pass by. We need to find out where these guys went."

Seeing LaVine's increasingly determined expression, Huffman still wanted to try to persuade him again.

“But, Captain, if our small team were to be attacked by orcs, the consequences would be unpredictable. Besides, we are too far from the Amar defense line. If we are attacked, there will be no time to rescue us.”

"From the day we decided to become scouts, we should have put life and death aside. If we don't track down what these orcs are transporting now, and it turns out to be used to attack us in the future, then we will be sinners. Every comrade who dies in the process will be caused by us."

In the howling cold wind, the team of twenty people followed the orcs' trail.

Arma Defense Line - Hall of Glory
"Kevin, have things been taken care of domestically?"

Standing in front of the sand table, the Marquis of Charlton looked without turning his head at the Earl of Hyland who was walking upstairs and asked.

Kevin handed the helmet to Knight Commander Taren, walked over to the sand table, picked up the intelligence report placed to the side, glanced at it, and said:

"It's resolved. This can be considered a blessing in disguise. After reviewing the Northern Territory, we discovered many interesting things."

I thought we Northerners were all tough guys. Well, the word "tough guy" was coined by my son.

But now it seems they're all a bunch of guys without eggs.

Charlton stopped what he was doing as he listened to Kevin's complaints. Although they were from the same generation, they were twenty years apart in age, which gave Kevin a special feeling when he was with the Marquis of Charlton.

"Hehehehe, that little guy Haven is indeed quite good. According to the news from the capital, he has managed to restore the reputation of our Northern Territory."

When his older brother praised his son, Kevin naturally felt proud, and even raised his chin a little.

"That brat, he did do quite well. Even Mori said that after reading his son's letter, he seemed much more cheerful. Anyway, let's not talk about that brat. After my trek across the entire North, I discovered some interesting things. Mori is currently investigating them. Once the investigation is complete, we can probably have some peace and quiet in the North for a while."

Upon hearing Kevin's pointed remark, the Marquis of Charlton raised an eyebrow and fell into deep thought, clearly still somewhat incredulous about the matter.

"So you two have basically confirmed it?"

"Basically, after all..."

This topic was clearly quite heavy, and when Kevin actually brought it up, he didn't know how to describe the chaotic feelings in his heart.

He took the glass handed to him by the Marquis of Charlton, the wine inside flowing like lava.

The 'Dietra Flame', which was made exclusively for special purposes, was a product of alchemists' failed attempts to create potions, but it lost its original medicinal value.

After a simple experiment by the alchemist, the potion turned out to be a decent drink. Especially after it was improved and turned into an alcoholic beverage, it became a favorite among the nobles.

However, due to its high production cost, even nobles could not drink it casually as an ordinary beverage.

The liquor slid down my throat, and a burning sensation felt like my entire esophagus had been scalded by boiling water. But this burning sensation quickly disappeared, replaced by an extreme sense of refreshment, like the feeling of walking out of a steam room after half an hour.

"Wow~ Even if I drink this stuff a hundred times, the stimulating feeling will still be incredibly novel."

After a moment of reflection, Kevin fumbled for the rim of his wine glass and fell silent again, as the firewood crackled and popped inside the room.

"Levin hasn't returned yet. I don't know if he's out of his mind or if he lost his mind fighting the orcs. This choice won't do him any good."

Charlton listened to the struggle and confusion in Kevin's voice, reached out and tapped his knuckles lightly on the table.

"Kevin, everyone has their own choices. We can't say who is right and who is wrong. All we can do is wait for him to make his decision."

As for the rest, let's talk about it after we get through this. Perhaps by then, many people will be gone, and it won't make much sense to dwell on who was right and wrong then.

The two sat by the fireplace, the burning pine wood emitting a faint scent of pine resin. Neither of them spoke, and they leaned back quietly on the sofa.

"My lord!!! My lord!!!!"

As the door to the lounge was pushed open, a gust of cold wind rushed in, quickly dispelling the warmth inside.

"what's wrong?"

The two looked over at the same time and saw a guard with a flustered expression push open the door and walk in.

"Lord Charlton, Lord Kevin, our scout patrol has discovered important intelligence at Elman Hill, but has now been ambushed by orc forces."

They are currently trapped in the second valley of Elman Hill. The troops deployed on the perimeter have advanced, but are unable to break through the orcish lines.

Upon hearing the guard's words, the two of them jumped up from their chairs and walked out the door.

Elman Hill

"Captain, Captain! Are you alright? Wake up, wake up~"

While unconscious, Raven felt as if a distant voice was coming from afar, but his eyelids were extremely heavy, and he couldn't open them no matter what he did.

In a daze, Raven's thoughts seemed to return to his childhood, to the open space outside the castle where he confronted the training wooden dummy.

Back then, I was so heroic, as if I were the most powerful person in the world. I don't know when it started, but that all-powerful child died.

Only a third-rank baron remained, struggling for the family's honor, the burden of restoring the family's glory weighing heavily on Raven. Until that day, that radiant figure appeared before him…

Ha~ Ha~ Ha~
Suddenly awake, Raven gasped for breath. Looking at his excited subordinates, Raven was a little dazed and confused. He struggled to get up.

Hiss~ Hiss~
The intense pain in his chest made Raven give up the idea of ​​getting up. He looked down and saw a sharp antelope horn stuck in his chest.

"Ah~

"Huffman, where are we?"

The strong, muscular man was on the verge of tears when he saw his captain had survived. His face was covered in blood, and he couldn't tell if it was his own or someone else's.

"Captain, we're at Elman Hill. We've been tracking the orc transport caravan all the way here. You've forgotten."

We discovered the orc army's heavy weapons here, but we didn't have time to make any detailed records before they were discovered.

We're in a canyon now, and I've already sent out a distress signal.

Hearing his subordinate's words, Raven's thoughts gradually became clearer as he recalled the crazy scene from just now.

How did the Aries come to this place? And what exactly is that huge thing?

"Huffman..."

"What's wrong, Captain?"

How many of us are left?

Huffman stood up, counted the heads, and answered.

"Captain, we now have fourteen brothers including you. Thanks to your heroic actions just now, otherwise we probably wouldn't have been able to escape at all."

"Turn off the disguise scroll and send a signal! Send the highest-level signal."

(End of this chapter)