Armored Cavalry, survive in a world full of mods

If we were to summarize what she was thinking at the time, and remove all the distractions, we could only come to one conclusion—it was as if the sky had fallen.

She couldn't imagine that person becoming weak, possibly dying or getting sick... From the moment they met in that jungle, this person had always been such a dazzling and powerful presence, as if draped in the sun's rays, naturally becoming the center of everyone's attention. No matter what kind of enemy or problem they encountered, they could easily solve it, just like a carriage traveling on the road wouldn't care about the lizard blocking its wheels; they only needed to follow along and run it over.

How could someone like that possibly get hurt? How could he possibly die?! It's as absurd as the sun falling from the sky! ... He shook his head vigorously, trying to banish these chaotic thoughts. Colin listlessly twirled the bowstring in his hand, while focusing his gaze on the sky.

A series of hurried footsteps sounded, and Colin turned around to see two long, muscular legs appear before him. His face froze instantly, and he reluctantly looked up. Only then did he see the golden hair gleaming in the sunlight, and that silly-looking face!

"What are you doing standing here? You should have let your men handle this. Or do you have so many people under you, yet you have to do it yourself to shoot two birds?"

Sure enough, he made me dislike him the moment he opened his mouth...

Colin's face darkened, and he retorted irritably:

"Then what are you doing here? Don't you have anything to do?"

Karila suddenly fell silent, not because she had nothing to say, but rather because she looked like she didn't know how to get to the bottom of her words. She looked around, found a raised spot to sit on, plopped down, and then scratched her head, uttering these words:

"...Don't you think we fought too chaotically last night? It felt like it just inexplicably turned into this...I don't even know why. The Master was also assassinated and hasn't woken up yet, but thankfully we still won in the end."

"You're making it sound like the adults aren't going to wake up..." Colin squinted, then saw another black dot appear in the sky. He drew another arrow from his quiver, nocked it, and waited.

"I already asked the doctor. The adult won't die, but the effects of the toxins will still be there, and it will take some time to recover."

The black dot in the sky grew larger and larger recklessly and ignorantly. Colin stood up, drew his longbow, and mentally estimated the trajectory and landing point of the arrow. At a certain moment, he made up his mind and prepared to release the bowstring.

"Hey! It looks like something's been delivered over there."

The timing was perfect. At this crucial moment, Karila's words promptly distracted Colin, causing his hand to tremble. The arrow grazed the black dot as it flew past. As if suddenly startled, the dark figure emitted an unpleasant groan and hurriedly turned to flee for its life.

Although he was still confident, Colin did not fire another arrow. Instead, he turned to look at the huge carriage that was heading towards the manor. The carriage was surrounded by a large number of cavalry guards. Their armor clashed and rubbed against each other with the gait of their warhorses, making a soft and clear metallic sound. They moved cautiously at a moderate pace and soon arrived at the gate.

The two knights at the head of the carriage, draped in long black robes, with bronze faces that conveyed both sorrow and joy, were prison guards from the capital. As the procession stopped in front of the gate, several soldiers worked together to unload a huge wooden crate from the carriage. Arka came out to greet them, which made both men realize that the situation was unusual—Arka was in charge of the entire mansion's defenses, and the fact that he had set aside other matters to focus on this...

Colin silently unstringed his bow and slung it behind his back. Carila also stood up, dusted herself off, and quickly began to go downstairs.

--------

The luxurious room features a large bed filled with velvet, surrounded by four sandalwood pillars. Above the pillars, a canopy is constructed of exquisite silk and finely crafted copper frames, with semi-transparent gauze hanging down around the perimeter. This design is both aesthetically pleasing and provides protection from mosquitoes in the summer, creating a look that is both luxurious and comfortable.

Thesolius removed his armor and lay fast asleep on the bed, wearing only a cotton shirt. He lay perfectly still, his hair neatly styled, without a trace of dishevelment, clearly having been specially groomed.

The bed is very comfortable, so soft it almost wraps you up, but he's been sleeping in it until now, clearly not because he's indulging in comfort.

The door was opened gently, and Talina entered carrying a tray. A fully armed bodyguard helped her with her other items. The two of them tiptoed to the bedside, and the bodyguard then withdrew, leaving Talina to examine Tersolius's injuries.

To be precise, this wasn't really an injury—after all, a cut less than 5 centimeters long was far from enough to put Tersolius into a deep sleep. The real threat was the potent poison it contained. During the battle with those strange creatures, Tersolius was wounded on the forehead because of the darkness of the environment. After the battle was over, he fell into a coma due to the aftereffects of the poison.

The wound on his forehead had already been carefully stitched up, with neat stitches, and his complexion was perfectly normal. He looked as if he would suddenly open his eyes at any moment, which was exactly what Talina expected—Tesolius should regain consciousness at least today.

The sun outside the window had reached its zenith, casting its warm rays upon the smoke-filled city, but Tersolius continued to breathe evenly, showing no sign of waking. This worried Talina... and she even began to wonder if she had made a mistake somewhere? Was there something wrong with the drug's formulation? Or had the potion been concocted incorrectly?

This worry made the girl unable to resist moving closer again, even reaching out to lift Tersolius's eyelids to take a look—and then she was startled by his suddenly opened eyes.

At this moment, Thesolius still seemed somewhat confused, his eyes no longer sharp and composed as usual. He stared intently at the bottom of the canopy above the bed, examining the luxurious silk supported by the gilded and carved bronze frame, and the golden passages drawn by the sunlight filtering through the air from the window.

"Stranger..."

"My lord! You've woken up."

A familiar voice came from the side, interrupting Tersolius's ramblings. He turned around and saw the look of surprise on Tarina's face. She hadn't even had time to retract her hand, and her eyes revealed relief and joy.

"Doctor...what time is it now? How many days have passed since I fainted?"

"It's only the second day, sir. Everything is going smoothly without any problems. This city is already ours. This is the city lord's mansion."

"Really... I feel like all my bones are aching, I thought I'd slept for days."

"This is normal. The subsequent cleansing of toxins will naturally put a certain burden on the body. It's also thanks to your robust health that you're able to cope. Most people would definitely need to sleep for several days and would be weak for a long time."

256 This concludes the first part (2)

After tidying himself up a bit, Tersolius didn't put on his armor, but just wore his black, belted, patterned silk robe. He hurriedly went to the warm and comfortable study in the building to deal with the things that had been delayed while he was unconscious.

He is now incredibly busy, with countless matters requiring his decisions every day, and no one else has the right to interfere. Even his trusted subordinates can only offer suggestions, and cannot overstep their bounds in the slightest. Therefore, he must deal with these headaches the moment he opens his eyes.

Among all the documents, the most eye-catching was a letter sent from the palace, handwritten by the emperor himself. The parchment on the envelope was smooth and clean, inlaid with gold wire and gemstone fragments, with delicate burrs on the edges. The seal on the sealing wax was an elaborate and vivid double-headed eagle, a seal that only one person in the country was qualified to use.

Of course, considering the time factor, this letter probably wouldn't contain any questions about his assassination attempt. After all, no matter how fast the messenger travels or how many methods they use, the speed of a letter can't be faster than that of an animal that carries a message. There will always be a delay in receiving information, it's just a matter of how long or short it is.

He naturally opened the letter first, peeled off the sealing wax and tossed it aside, then pulled out the soft, smooth, and more exquisite letter paper, and began to read it by the bright sunlight streaming through the window.

………………

Overall, the situation at home remains stable. At least while this grand feast of war is underway, every part of the empire appears more harmonious, and the arguments in the Senate become much more peaceful. At least, few people stand up and demand that the other side settle the matter with blood in the arena.

Now, a vast expanse of land extending northward from this city has come under the Empire's control. This is a harvest that, though anticipated, is still incredibly rich. Therefore, one can imagine that the Empire will soon unleash a new wave of activity, and people's enthusiasm will rise again, with even greater confidence in the nation.

Supply has always been of paramount importance, concerning the life and death of the entire legion. As the battle lines continue to advance, the legion's supply lines will inevitably be stretched, and unexpected events and variables will be more likely to occur. He could not tolerate anyone being able to threaten it by then. Now that Toracasi has fallen into their hands, Tokapaa, a city that guards the river and is easy to defend but difficult to attack, must also be dealt with.

Fortunately, with Toracassi under his control, he will have more options...

Thoughts raced through his mind, sparking flashes of inspiration. He made decisions from time to time, while Tarina categorized the tasks and assigned them to specific people. In their intermittent conversations, the pile of parchment on the table grew thinner and thinner, and his spirits improved as he rapidly recovered from his previous weakness.

"I must say, sir, you have exceeded my expectations..."

Talina uttered a remark with considerable emotion, which made Tersolius turn his head curiously:

"What means?"

The girl looked him up and down, her eyes filled with amazement and joy:

"Your recovery speed far exceeded my expectations... To be honest, if I hadn't seen you wake up with my own eyes, I might have thought that assassination attempt was just a nightmare... In just half a day, the physical weakness and nerve pain that should have troubled most people for at least half a month have disappeared from your body. It seems that my previous assessment of your physical condition was too conservative. Next time I encounter a similar situation, I can be even bolder with the dosage of the medication!"

"...If you're confident, then of course there's no problem...Speaking of which, Doctor, how's your examination of our spoils coming along?"

The so-called spoils of war naturally refer to the strange creatures left behind by their swords after the assassinations failed, which are naturally analyzed by Talina, a professional.

The girl was silent for a moment before pulling out a few pieces of parchment from the table:

"In fact, sir, I have already compiled a rather detailed report, which is what I have discovered over this period of time."

Tersolius immediately reached out and took it, and was surprised to find that it not only had neat and beautiful handwriting, but also exquisitely drawn patterns. In a way that was both familiar and amazing to him, it vividly and accurately depicted the structure of certain internal organs, bones and muscles, as well as fat and skin. After looking at it for a while, he could almost imagine the smelly and sticky scene.

As he watched, Talina provided commentary:

"Some things have remained largely unchanged. For instance, the majority of the tissue material that makes up these organisms still comes from the human body, primarily from young and middle-aged men... But what keeps these severed limbs active and takes over their nervous systems is parasites—and a new type of variant at that. Similar to this variant is the Beta II variant found within the Empire. I have some information about that here in sections 5-24..."

Tersolius turned a page and found the relevant record there—the target was captured by the jailers. He was originally a down-on-his-luck rogue in the village, but he showed abnormal behavior over a few days and eventually mutated. After causing one death and one injury in the village, he fled into the forest. A pair of jailers who were investigating the situation of cults in the empire took over the case and finally captured the target after two days of pursuit.

The dissection of the target revealed that its spine and main nervous system were controlled by the black tentacles of the parasite. The parasite had essentially become the creature's second brain, manipulating it to perform activities based on certain instincts, including feeding, hunting, resting, and drinking.

"According to your description and the descriptions of other witnesses, this variant is very likely to have the ability to change its color and blur light, but it is difficult to conceal its scent, so hunting dogs with a sensitive sense of smell may be able to find their tracks."

"Furthermore, I observed abnormal activity in the body tissues. The suture marks remained on the surface, while the deep muscles and bones had completely grown and fused together. Normal body tissues would never have such a strong repair ability. It cannot be ruled out that the parasite secreted some kind of substance for the host, which led to this result."

"In addition, I can confirm that the skeleton of this creature was modified and pieced together... to minimize weight while ensuring that most of its strength is retained, so that it can move more quickly and flexibly."

…………

"Besides hunting dogs with their keen sense of smell, what other ways can we detect this creature? It's a considerable threat..."

Tersolius looked serious. Even he couldn't help but feel worried. Although the assassination attempt had ultimately failed and completely destroyed the morale and fighting spirit of the Hols, if a different general had come, the Hols would most likely have succeeded in the end. This kind of thing was really hard to guard against.

If this kind of thing becomes available in large quantities, then he will have to adjust his strategy...

"Regarding this, we don't really need to worry too much..."

Talina smiled slightly:

"These constructs are difficult to mass-produce, which is evident from their structure, if I'm not mistaken..."

........................

“Damn Tersolius! Damn bastard! I curse you ignorant fools! I curse you! You have no idea who you’ve offended! ... Huff! Huff!”

A short figure, completely covered in black cloth, was moving swiftly through the jungle, muttering under his breath as he ran. Upon closer listening, it was clear that all he was doing was vicious curses and furious insults.

He moved swiftly through the forest as if it were flat ground. The dense bushes and rampant thorns posed no obstacle to him; he always managed to nimbly and quickly bypass them. He didn't stop for a long time, running from when the moon was still shining in the sky until noon when the sun was shining brightly on the earth.

Most people would be too exhausted to even move a finger after traveling all night like this, even if they didn't fall and get seriously injured. But he didn't seem to be exhausted at all. He seemed to have inexhaustible energy and was still walking briskly.

Even while running, he still had room to vent his emotions by talking nonsense. Even without companions, he kept talking the whole way, as if he were complaining to someone he couldn't see.

This is partly due to the seed of wisdom implanted in his spine—which allows him to stay awake and have plenty of energy for long periods of time, always managing to escape at critical moments, and enabling him to withstand more damage than ordinary mortals, even enough to survive severe injuries such as those that pierce the heart or break the spine.

On the other hand, it was because of the special medicine he took. In this dense and complex forest, no means of transportation was as convenient and fast as two legs. Even the most magnificent warhorse would have difficulty moving here. However, after drinking the medicine, he could maintain an extremely high speed and run continuously for several hours. No one could catch him in this terrain.

Of course, this doesn't come without a price—after escaping, he will be extremely weak. At that point, he'll even have difficulty lifting his eyelids, so he must find a safe enough area to hide in before then, otherwise even a child could easily slit his throat.

He knew there were several designated safe zones in the area; if he could get there before the drug wore off…

The man, who was running at top speed, stopped. His heels kicked up a large chunk of grass, and his leather boots sank into the damp mud, spilling dew all over the ground.

Even though the sunlight shines brightly through the treetops, people unfamiliar with the terrain can easily become disoriented by the trees of all sizes, and may even overlook important things.

“Damn Tersolius!…”

He was so angry that his gums were aching and itchy, and he was in a very gloomy state. Just two days ago, he had a confident and triumphant look on his face, but now he looked miserable.

He couldn't help but feel resentful... After all, he had made thorough preparations, even sending out all the constructs just in case, all to completely eliminate Tersolius, the enemy of the Holy Order—he had even considered the woman who always ruined their plans, and specifically set aside some to deal with her.

To maximize the chances of success, he even launched the plan when the city was about to fall, darkness was approaching, and the target was most relaxed and undefended. He also scouted the terrain of the camp beforehand to ensure that nothing went wrong. Despite all his meticulous planning and attention to detail, he still failed at the last minute. No one would be willing to accept that.

Not only did he fail to complete his important mission, but he also lost all the important constructs in one fell swoop. He even failed to achieve the secondary goal of dealing with the Hols woman, which can be described as a complete defeat.

He touched a recessed triangle on the bark with his finger to make sure he was on the right track, and then started moving forward again.

…………

No matter how much anger is used to cover it up, it is always difficult for a person to ignore their true thoughts deep inside. The man knew very well why he was so uneasy—fear was compressing his heart, making him as restless as an ant on a hot pan.

This fear stemmed not only from the potential punishment for his shameful and incompetent failure, but also from the lingering threat behind him.

In just a dozen breaths, barely enough time to even take a piss, he clearly sensed that more than half of the constructs he had sent out had been lost. He didn't dare to linger and turned to run away in fright.

As it turned out, his decision was absolutely wise, because the Imperials then released a large pack of military dogs to thoroughly search every corner of the surrounding fields, houses, and mountains. If he hadn't escaped in time, he would probably have fallen into the hands of the Imperials.

It was precisely because of this deep-seated fear that he cursed incessantly as he fled, trying to calm himself down and relieve the pressure, as if cursing Tersolius here would actually cause him any trouble, have any effect, or bring him some kind of victory...

Sweeping away the fallen leaves, the man opened the oak plank tunnel door and, after confirming no one was following him, cautiously descended. As he closed the wooden door, a strange gust of wind suddenly appeared, stirring up a clump of leaves and erasing all traces of the tunnel…

257 This concludes the first part (3)

Safe houses may not be comfortable, but they generally provide seclusion and security. This is the basic function of such locations—to provide people with special circumstances with a place where they can temporarily escape their pursuers, recover their strength, and replenish their supplies.

To excavate a basement in an unknown forest and then conceal it with dead trees and fallen leaves is truly remarkable. Unless one has exceptionally keen senses or prior knowledge of the location, it's unlikely anyone would even realize such a place existed, let alone notice it while passing by.

In the darkness, the man calmly groped around in a hole on the left side of the wall for a while, then pulled out a white candle and a flint and steel for starting a fire. In the pitch-black environment, he accurately struck the flint and steel with the curved steel piece. A few bright sparks flashed in the darkness, and some of the ignited fragments fell into the fluffy tinder on the table. The reddish-brown flame continued to expand and spread, and soon it became bright in the darkness.

The flame was used to light the candles on the table, which were then placed on silver candlesticks. The light began to spread, dispelling the darkness and cold. It illuminated the space, which, while not spacious, was not cramped either.

The floor here is paved with neat blue bricks, and the surrounding walls are made of the same material, keeping the murky and dirty soil out of reach. A small copper bowl on a nearby table holds evaporated potion, ensuring that the dampness and darkness won't attract any insects. It also leaves a lingering, acidic, pungent smell.

The space wasn't large; it contained only a table, a bed, and a box in the corner. The box was double-layered, with a moisture-absorbing agent made of quicklime and other materials sandwiched between the layers to ensure the contents wouldn't be damaged.

Without pausing, he opened the box and took out the contents one by one, placing them on the table—dry biscuits wrapped in oiled paper, dried meat coated in oil and sealed in paper packages, and various medicines packaged in glass bottles, each with a different function, perhaps poison, perhaps tonic, or even medicine to speed up wound healing and reduce bleeding.

Of course, the most important thing cannot be forgotten... He took out a bottle of light purple potion from a hidden compartment on the side of the box. There were thin, thread-like things wriggling inside. If you looked more closely, you could see the unique segments of soft-bodied creatures on these white thread-like things.

Most people would keep their distance from such a thing, even if they didn't throw it away, but his eyes showed a look of wild joy, as if a traveler who had been trekking in the desert for days had seen a clear water source. That kind of soul-deep longing made him unwilling to wait even a moment longer. He directly bit off the cork with his teeth, tilted his head back, and poured it all down his throat.

The next moment, accompanied by a suppressed scream, his eyes turned bloodshot, and the skin on his entire face turned purple. Some tiny thread-like things could be seen spreading out from under his skin, rapidly spreading to every corner of his body. This process lasted for half an hour before he stood up, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and although he was completely exhausted, he felt a sense of relief.

"Finally, we managed to feed this greedy little guy in time..."

He let out a long sigh, relieved that the ominous churning in his head had finally stopped. The sticky, drilling sound that kept reaching his ears was like a death knell, forcing him to rush here without daring to linger for even a moment. Otherwise, he couldn't even imagine the terrible consequences he would have faced if he had delayed.

By the light of a candle, he tore open a hard biscuit wrapped in oil paper and began to bite into it with difficulty. He then opened the wine jug next to him and used the cold wine, which had a bitter taste of mugwort, to rinse the biscuit crumbs from his mouth.

These durable biscuits undergo three baking processes and five drying processes. The final product is then wrapped in waterproof material, allowing them to be used even after five or six years, although they will put considerable strain on your teeth.

After wolfing down his food, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, wrapped himself tightly in his black robe, and lay down on the bare wooden bed, preparing to rest for a while before setting off again.

He gently blew out the candle on the surface, conserving precious lighting fuel, and the basement was plunged into darkness again. Although it was pitch black, it was safe enough for someone to sleep soundly... That's how it should be.

A dark shadow silently emerged from the head of his bed, as if it were a real shadow, making no sound. But he still felt uneasy instinctively and reached out to grab the candle he had just extinguished—the effects of the potion had worn off, and he had lost his ability to see in the darkness.

He had to stop halfway through the movement when a terrible numbness spread from his shoulder to his fingertips and then quickly spread down his spine, as if someone had smashed rocks into powder and poured it into his veins. The hard, heavy things were flowing through his body with his blood, and soon he could no longer move.

An immense fear surged through his heart once more. He was certain that there were others here, but he was completely immobilized, only able to move his eyes.

"It's really interesting..."

A sharp, dry voice rang out beside his head. He could almost picture the man looking down at him, his voice full of smugness and curiosity, like a skilled hunter eyeing his prey in a trap.