Armored Cavalry, survive in a world full of mods

"That's great, I just had the same idea!"

As always, Karila never hides her emotions when expressing them. She's happy when she's happy, unhappy when she's unhappy, and she'll clearly show it if she's going to take action—it's ridiculously easy to understand.

"Then they'll see how successful their daughter has become! She's a renowned warrior throughout the South. I can also bring back some more things to broaden their horizons..."

“Kurist is now under our control. You can go from the east; that should be faster… An interesting conjecture…”

The latter part of Tersolius's words suddenly turned somber, causing Karila to raise her head in confusion:

"Huh? Sir, what are you saying?"

"It's nothing." Tersolius shook his head slightly. The group arrived at the camp, and the guards, without exception, demanded that they state their squad number and respond to the password given in response to their questions. Only after confirming that everything was correct did they open the camp gate and let them in.

"I just suddenly had some ideas, they're not quite mature yet... You came from the north, do you know what the Kiel people have been like these past few years?"

"The Kiel people... I haven't seen too many, only twice when I ran out of money for the journey and had to go somewhere to find work."

"Although it's not as cold as my hometown, people there can still raise cattle and sheep. Most of the cattle and sheep raised there live on a kind of cold-resistant moss. The houses they live in are built with tree bark and animal hides, and they also burn black stones dug out of the ground."

“My dad told me that they had a really tough time in the past few years, with people starving to death one after another. But it seems that after a war, life became much better. There weren’t as many people eating food, and the remaining people had an easier time.”

"...Oh! I remember now, it was you who beat them up, sir! I heard that you cut off the head of their leader, the Khan, and many people died at once."

"Now that you've realized it, no matter how you try to embellish it, you're still slow to react... Don't you always like to drink with others? I'm still confident that I'll be frequently mentioned in bars."

Tersolius waved his hand gently, dismissing the cavalrymen, while his personal guards continued to follow, surrounding the two of them as they walked toward the main tent.

"Who remembers anything when they're drinking... The more you drink, the less clear your mind is, the better. It's best not to think about anything at all, that's the most enjoyable thing."

"Oh, right, there's one more thing—the Khan of the Kiel was called something like... Hetoro?... I saw a lot of strange furnaces there, and they worked quite well. I heard that this Khan traded with the Westerners, and they traded quite a lot of things. I even met two or three merchants from those Western places on the road."

“Those guys don’t have to worry about being robbed by bandits at all. The Kiel soldiers are always following them. I’ve almost been chased and killed by bandits several times… This is the first time I’ve ever met a merchant who doesn’t do business at your doorstep. You can’t buy their things even if you have money.”

"Merchants from Western countries?..."

Thesolius lowered his head thoughtfully, his fingers unconsciously stroking the blade on his right side and tapping it lightly.

"Ah, right! My dad and I used to go there often to rob... to get things. I would never mistake what the people there look like, although I was also quite curious at the time why they would do business in the north?"

"Perhaps. I think they might be mutually beneficial, a win-win situation..."

269 ​​Results and Gains (1)

"I think I must be dreaming..."

Baria had a disorienting feeling on his face, as if he were walking in the sky, until his friend gave him a push from behind, which made him subconsciously take a few more steps forward.

“Even if you’re dreaming, you should at least get your legs moving. If you delay this, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to cut off both your and my heads.”

Although Caledo behind him appeared calmer, his trembling hands and feet and his unsteady gait betrayed the turmoil in his heart. His entire back was stiff, as if an iron bar had been driven into it.

They were surrounded by the crisp, dense sounds of armor clashing and rubbing together. The gleaming armor plates were polished to a shine, covered with a thin layer of grease, making them moisture-proof, rust-proof, sturdy, and thick. Even halberds and axes would find it difficult to penetrate such fine armor.

The brass decorations on top were exquisitely crafted, reflecting a clear and bright golden yellow under the sun. Like a drawn sword, light and shadow constantly flashed across their faces, making the two of them tremble with fear. They even had to manually control their breathing, not daring to make the slightest mistake.

Baria was considered a robust young man in his village, and even in the army, he rarely saw anyone stronger and taller than himself. But now… these imposing armored warriors around him, even the shortest of them, were half a head taller than him. Their broad shoulders and muscular arms couldn't be completely concealed even by heavy armor. He had no doubt that any one of them could slaughter him like a sheep…

Their weapons were all exquisite and sturdy, clearly of considerable value. As they marched, their ranks were impeccably orderly, with not a single person's steps faltering, exuding an inorganic coldness and solemnity.

These were the personal guards of the Consul of Tersolius. Although there were only six of them, they made the entire centurion's unit not dare to breathe. The centurion received the burly officer in charge of them with respect and caution—only later did they learn that he was actually Arka, the captain of Consul of Tersolius's personal guard.

Then the two of them were called out, and without even giving them time to tidy up, they were immediately taken away by the guards.

Knowing they were going to meet the Consul of Tersolius, the two were so nervous they almost couldn't walk, and it took them a lot of effort to finally get outside.

Can either of you ride a horse?

When two people nod at the same time, the coordination is so good that you might wonder if their heads are connected.

"Alright, you can use those two horses first. Keep up with our speed, we need to get there before this afternoon."

Alka raised his finger and pointed to two magnificent warhorses beside the stable, while his right hand held a skinny boy who dared not struggle, as easily as lifting a kitten.

The two boys who brought back the boy from the tunnel and the strange creature that had been killed were to be sent to the river mouth camp. Unable to stand the filthy fellow, the two boys worked together to throw him into the river, gave him a thorough wash, threw away his stained and tattered linen clothes, and shave his messy hair with a dagger until it was close to his scalp. Their hands were white and wrinkled from rubbing him so much that they finally made him look like a human.

Surprisingly, the boy had fairly regular features. After being cleaned up, he looked quite energetic. You'd think he was the kind of kid who would run around the village, throw mud at other people's walls, and get hung up and whipped by his parents.

After saying this, Alka tossed the boy to his men behind him, who then put him in the carriage. Everyone quickly mounted their horses, and a huge wooden box was placed on another carriage. Once everything was ready, he gave a command, and the procession sped through the streets and alleys out of the castle, heading towards the distance.

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

A piece of translucent grease will make a hot stone slab shine when rubbed lightly. Then, thin slices of venison will be placed on it one by one, producing a wonderful sizzling sound. Sprinkle with a little salt and spice powder, and soon an enticing aroma of meat will waft out.

Brazil Saiyaros waited eagerly nearby, while Tesorus flipped through the book in his hands. This palm-sized booklet, made of dozens of parchment bound together, was the kind of medium commonly used by the imperial jailers to record prisoners' confessions or special information. It was of excellent quality and, if properly maintained, could be preserved for hundreds of years without changing color.

Venison has very little fat and very chewy fibers. Adding more oil during cooking can significantly enhance the flavor. Wild onions and green vegetables are also grilled next to the stone slab to cut through the richness. Eating them together can whet the appetite and stimulate the appetite.

Brazil's Seyalros even removed the iron mask that seemed to be attached to his face, unabashedly exposing his own face to Tersolius. Now he tried to use a fork to scoop meat from the stone slab.

In stark contrast to his voice, this shrewd warden had a handsome, angular, and hard-lined face with long, thin eyebrows, bright eyes, and finely curled hair that was carefully trimmed to the length of half a finger to ensure it wouldn't interfere with wearing his mask and armor.

His appearance easily attracted the attention of noblewomen in every city of the empire, but when he put on that iron mask, he instantly became a figure that struck fear into the hearts of some nobles. His cold, dry voice was like the sharp hooting of an owl on a tree branch.

Stuffing a thin, curled piece of venison into his mouth and chewing, Brazil Saiyaros didn't seem to be there to report his haul at all; he looked more like a man enjoying a meal at a restaurant. Meanwhile, Tesorus finally finished turning the last page and placed the booklet on the table.

"As always, you did a superb job... Although I had some suspicions about the organizational structure of these scoundrels, I never expected it to be so tightly organized... Can you be sure he was telling the truth?"

“Of course I can ensure that, sir.”

The man chuckled, wiped his mouth, and continued to enthusiastically pick up a thick slice of meat from the plate beside him, ready to savor its completely different flavor.

“I conducted some rather pleasant research on him, and I also sent a copy of the results to Dr. Tarina… I think his will is not strong enough to remain clear under my methods, and I questioned him six times in a row. If even once, if he said a single word that was different from before, then this booklet would not have appeared before you.”

"If that happens, I will be even more cautious and meticulous in my approach to the task until I am certain that what he says is flawless."

Tesolius nodded slowly. He wasn't interested in what methods Brazil Saiyaros had used; after all, the other party was a professional, and as the commander, he only needed to get the result.

"In this light, the highest-ranking mortal among them must be the one called the 'Holy Throne,' the so-called Lord of All Wisdom, the spokesperson of the Supreme One of Knowledge, the beloved son of wisdom, the guide of truth... What a fancy title! Even the most vain king would rarely bestow such titles upon himself."

The thick-cut venison is already sizzling and dripping with oil. Sprinkle with a little salt and toss it around. Then wrap it with the wild onions from the oven next to it, and pop it into your mouth in one bite. Be careful to avoid the scalding heat that could burn your tongue until the temperature is tolerable. Then chew it slowly with your teeth to release the meat juices and onion flavor to the maximum extent in your mouth.

"Below the Holy See are the Delegates—meaning the executors of the Sons of Wisdom, the overseers of the will of God, hoo hoo! Under the will of the Holy See, each performs their duties and operates the entire organization, which is the second level of their power structure."

"Next level down is their various departments. As far as we know, there are 'tree planters' responsible for infiltration, 'hunters' responsible for abduction and capture, and 'guests' responsible for bribing officials and nobles..."

"And their envoys are each assigned specific areas to be in charge of. Otherwise, the one in the southern region is a guy named Protia... It's a great pity about this, sir. Although I sent out some capable men as soon as they were interrogated, we got nothing. This cunning prey escaped long ago, leaving us with nothing."

"Didn't he say anything more about this Protia? Since he is in charge of the entire Southern Province and the Kingdom of Hols, and as the head of the hunting team in charge of assassination missions, our guest should know more. At the very least, he should have met the other party."

"Ah, about this!... I had the same suspicions as you, sir... at least until yesterday. I used even more methods to make sure he told me everything he knew, collected relevant physical characteristics, and had one of my men with some skills draw this."

As he spoke, he pulled another piece of parchment from his pocket. The edges of the parchment were somewhat wrinkled, clearly indicating that it had been on him for quite some time, crumpled and bruised by his clothes and body.

Tersolius raised his eyebrows and reached out to take it—his initial surprise had faded considerably, and he felt himself becoming increasingly receptive.

When his gaze finally settled on the parchment, a slight disappointment even crept into his heart—this was not the detailed and vivid portrait he had imagined. The outline drawn with ink was somewhat rough, and there were obvious traces of artificial embellishment. It was more like a black and white illustration in some books.

But at the same time, certain features were also accurately depicted... such as curly medium-length hair, droopy eyes, and a mole the size of a fingernail in the middle of the nose.

He also has a wide mouth, a plump face, prominent eyes, and thin, short eyebrows... Taken together, he is a well-off and honest middle-aged man with quite distinctive features, especially since all these features are concentrated in one person, making him even more conspicuous.

With just a simple black and white pattern, Tersolius could almost tell what this guy was like in his daily life. Judging from his appearance alone, his slick and sophisticated characteristics were almost palpable.

"These features are so obvious they're almost ridiculous; it's possible the other person is just using a disguise... You should have already taken precautions, right?"

The last thick slice of venison was roasted until golden brown. Tersolius tapped the table, and soon several more plates were brought in by servants, along with some fresh fish—just caught from the river.

"Indeed, as you said, sir, it is quite rare for one person to possess all these characteristics at the same time. However, our thorough investigation over the past few days has yielded nothing. Now we can be fairly certain that this is not his true appearance."

"Speaking of which, quite a few unlucky guys with medium-length curly hair and chubby faces have been arrested, but they have all been cleared of suspicion. Now there are rumors circulating in the city that the Empire hates men with long curly hair and that they will be arrested and imprisoned if they are found out. Hairdressers are doing very well now, and even many women have cut their hair short."

At this point, Brazil's Saiyaros was quite amused, but his hands were not slow at all as he picked up another large piece of the whole fish side meat, and threw it onto the stone slab with light and quick movements, which immediately caused a burst of steam and a loud crackling of oil.

"Have you clarified their methods for selecting targets and sacrifices?"

Brazilian Saiyarlos stopped in surprise:

"You mean, you suspect...?"

Tersolius nodded:

"Of course I would suspect that these despicable people lurking in the shadows have repeatedly refused to give up and have always tried to pick out the problem to attract attention. It is hard for me not to suspect their motives."

"This is my mistake, sir! I failed to dig out this aspect in detail... Please allow me to take my leave now, as I must quickly make amends for my error!"

Brazil's Saiyaros stood up abruptly, and in the process, the iron mask unknowingly pressed against his face, tensing his body as he awaited Tersolius's reply.

"No need to rush, Warden. I called you here not just to inquire about your gains... There are still things here that require your attention."

"My lord, you may have misunderstood me..." The stern-faced fiend scratched his headscarf somewhat sheepishly.

"What I mean is that guy might not make it through the night. After all, to make sure I got the information I needed, I went a little overboard... If we're going to continue interrogating him, this is our last chance..."

“Talina was gone this morning. Trust me, Warden, no matter what you do to him, Talina will always find a way to keep that guy alive until we no longer need him.”

270 Results, Harvest (2)

They had seen the army's camp many times before—to be precise, they lived in the camp most of the time. The imperial army's encampment was very well organized, with precise roads laid out between each tent and building, rarely deviating. Even if the camp had been moved to another location, the two of them could still accurately find their thousand-man squad's encampment.

It was already evening, and the fiery sunset covered the buildings and flags. The mild climate of the Hols region made the winter, which should have been tough, quite gentle so far. The evening breeze did not freeze people's faces, and the soldiers were not in a hurry to hide in their barracks, still enjoying this rare leisure.

Even though they had already eaten dinner and it was almost evening, the soldiers, who were supposed to be resting, were still expending their excess energy on the training field. It wasn't a team-based battle, but rather one-on-one, many-on-many, or one-on-many martial arts contests.

The soldiers of the empire regard combat skills as the foundation for their livelihood and wealth. Therefore, anyone with even a little ambition will not slack off in this area and will always seize every opportunity to hone their skills. As Calido said, it is quite difficult to stand out in the country's elite and massive legions. If you are weak in even the basic skills for survival, you can forget about ever making any progress in your life.

In the training field nearby, an unfair contest was unfolding—ten strong, armored warriors were charging relentlessly at a tall woman, maintaining perfect formation and seamless teamwork. Normally, even an opponent ten times their size would suffer heavy losses and be routed in this machine-like, precise, and efficient slaughter.

But now their fierce and brutal offensive could only result in one thing... one after another, they were knocked to the ground by long axes, and their formation was violently torn apart.

The long-handled axe in his hand drew a beautiful arc, almost skimming the ground as it hooked onto the ankle of his last opponent. Caught completely off guard, he pulled with both hands and shoulders, causing the heavily armored warrior to tumble to the ground. The axe, following the shifting of his grip, whistled and struck the man's chest, causing him to groan as he struggled to his feet before collapsing back down, silently curling up.

Even with heavy armor, this blow was still quite painful. Although it didn't leave any serious injuries, bruising and pain were unavoidable.

It took him quite a while to catch his breath. Around the same time, the others gradually got up from the ground, each looking dejected and frustrated with their earlier defeat.

"Are you all alright? I deliberately held back a bit of my strength; hitting your armor should only cause some minor injuries."

Carila slung the axe over her shoulder, casually wiped her nose with her left hand, and reached out to pull a slow-moving man up from the ground.

"Your words make us feel ashamed, champion... Your strength is undeniable, we accept our defeat."

The lead soldier took off his helmet, wiping the sweat from inside with a somewhat disheveled expression. He shook his head and sighed, then waved to the side. Soon, a subordinate brought him a small leather bag, from which the distinctive clinking of coins could be heard as he swung his wrist.

“This is our bet—three full-strength gold dinars and twelve silver dinars.”

Carila took it without hesitation, her expression becoming increasingly pleased.

"Haha, easy, easy! If you want to spar with someone, I welcome you anytime. Next time, there's no need for a wager. Let's have a good fight! ... Sigh, then I'll accept this. After all, you didn't win a single one of the three matches."

The man's expression grew increasingly stiff, as if he were furious, but when this emotion reached its peak, he suddenly relaxed, becoming utterly helpless.

"This is a disgrace we brought upon ourselves... We've suffered enough today, it's time to go back and get some rest."

…………

Karila triumphantly tossed the money pouch in her hand. The empire's currency was of high gold content and subject to the strictest supervision. Any slight change in the ratio would be severely punished. Therefore, it was highly reputable throughout the continent. Merchants from many countries would use the empire's standard gold coin as a template when making transactions to measure the gold content of the currency.

Although she wasn't short of money, no one could refuse to add a little more to their savings, which would allow them to accomplish great things in the future.

The group of people passing by quickly caught her attention. After Alka, who was in the lead, nodded slightly to her, he continued walking toward the central military tent without stopping, making Karila keenly aware that something was about to happen.

In particular, the sight of a tall box that was subsequently pushed over, along with a familiar, strange, and fishy stench, invigorated her. After a slight hesitation, she ultimately decided against following it.

She knows very well what she is good at, and she also knows that there are some things that don't require her involvement, as doing so would only make things worse.

………………

“Cut it all off; there is no other way.”

The cold verdict came from Tarina's mouth, but the victim who was to receive it was destined not to hear it. He was already half-conscious from the excruciating pain and injuries, barely clinging to life. Even his parasite-enhanced limbs and internal organs could not prolong his life for much longer.

Brazilian surgeon Sejaroth's exquisite yet cruel skills were fully displayed on his body. Fascia and exposed bone could be seen everywhere. He skillfully avoided vital blood vessels and destroyed sensitive nerves, allowing him to survive to this day... It's unimaginable just how much pain he endured.

Talina's face was also somewhat pale. Faced with such a terrible sight, she couldn't help but feel a pang of pity—but this compassion unique to doctors was immediately extinguished. Doctors knew very well the countless blood debts this sinner had incurred against the innocent. This torment and suffering was far less than one percent of his sins and was the punishment he deserved.

What she needs to do now is to keep the sinner alive and let him continue to be of value; she doesn't need to think about anything else.

The limbs are now completely unusable and have no value for treatment or repair. Removing them as soon as possible will help prevent infection and reduce pain.

Although the abdominal wound was precisely cut, it was clearly not disinfected and is now showing signs of infection, requiring immediate attention…

"Yeliya, take everything out...Yeliya?"

Talina turned her head in confusion and saw a red-haired girl trembling all over.