Armored Cavalry, survive in a world full of mods

The sword thrust was ruthless and swift; countless people had their heads pierced by this sudden counterattack. Although the man in front of him was short, his sword never missed its mark…

The blade sliced ​​through the air without cutting into flesh, but just as the Hols man's eyes widened, a sharp pain shot through his knee.

But then, the short fellow rolled over on the ground and appeared behind him. The greatsword in his hand sprang up from the ground and slashed viciously into the back of his knee.

Before his scream could even escape his throat, the sword was drawn in an arc and severed his head from behind...

The hot blood gushing from Colin's neck cavity steamed and stained his hair crimson. The girl wiped the blood from her face to clear her vision.

The city gates were not lowered after all, and the cavalry, like an iron torrent, rushed into the city unimpeded. As soon as they entered the city gates, they immediately split into three groups and launched a rapid assault along the city's three main roads.

The city's roads are quite well-constructed. After the soil is compacted, gravel and fine sand are laid on top, followed by a layer of neat stone slabs.

Such a road is very convenient for both caravans and town residents, and it is also particularly suitable for large cavalry units to launch attacks.

How could those hastily assembled city garrisons withstand the onslaught of armored cavalry? In the blink of an eye, they were scattered and fled in all directions.

The crisp sound of horses' hooves striking the stone slabs echoed everywhere on the road. The residents, who had been making a ruckus just moments before, now cowered in their homes, listening to the sound as if it were a death knell, fearing that those terrifying soldiers would suddenly break down their doors and hack them to death.

The cavalrymen silently spurred their warhorses, scattering every enemy who attempted to resist, trampling them under their hooves, and slashing and killing them indiscriminately, but not one of them kicked open the houses along the street to plunder their belongings.

Resistance in every corner of the city weakened, and the garrison was driven like sheep to the central square, many of them terrified.

This city has been at peace for far too long. Every day, slave owners bring in large numbers of slaves from war-torn regions, but the people here have never seen war in their entire lives.

The city's garrison only deals with trivial matters every day; how could they have ever seen such a scene?

Those cavalrymen, their bodies gleaming with bloodlust, plowed up street after street, and anyone who dared to resist was swiftly and decisively killed by their spears.

For the first time in 52 years, blood, except for that of slaves, was spilled on the cobblestones of the street... The mangled, missing limbs and bodies piled up by the roadside, and the seeping blood seeped into the cracks of doors, causing the residents hiding in their homes to let out screams of terror.

Under such a terrible attack, seeing the gleaming armored vehicles swarming in, many garrison soldiers simply dropped their weapons and knelt on the ground to surrender.

They quickly occupied most of the city, leaving only the small inner city to put up a stubborn resistance.

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

A mountain man looked at the bustling shops on the street with a resentful expression. There must be countless good things inside. Not to mention the money these people had accumulated, even the fine dried meat and sausages in the shops made his mouth water.

But he just watched longingly, not daring to take a single step out. The mountain people around him, who were used to being lawless and unrestrained, were the same as him, just drooling over the shops, not daring to go in and vandalize them.

The girl with dark blonde hair was also incredibly envious, but she still slurped her saliva and then obediently led her people toward the city's central square.

It wasn't that they didn't want to do it, but they were afraid... Although this new boss usually made sure they were well-fed and clothed, and even gave them money, he wasn't arrogant and would sometimes chat with them.

But once people saw him on the battlefield, none of the mountain people were not afraid. Even the most unruly mountain people would tremble at the sight of Tersolius frowning.

The cavalrymen didn't know what was going on. Even when panicked merchants threw their glittering gold coins by the roadside, they didn't even glance at them and recklessly spurred their horses forward.

Even they received military orders to reach their destination in the shortest possible time, without delay. So they could only watch the gold coins scattered on the roadside, wincing in pain.

No one wanted to know what the consequences of disobeying orders would be, and even if they had never seen such consequences, they didn't dare to try it...

Walking briskly onto the city's neat and beautiful stone-paved road, the mountain people, with their swift legs, arrived at a corner of the square in the blink of an eye.

In the center of this spacious square is a beautifully constructed fountain that draws water from underground wells, flowing day and night into the surrounding canals to supply the residents of the entire city.

To protect this water source, a pavilion was specially built over the fountain... Perhaps this wasn't originally a fountain, but rather it was formed naturally because the well water gushed out so violently.

In one corner of the square, backed by the city wall on the other side, there was a small inner city... This inner city was built on a towering hill, and an arc-shaped city wall completely blocked the way.

This wall connects to the city's original walls, forming a fan shape with the three walls. Combined with its elevated location, many of the city's garrison troops fled inside, which actually made the defenses here much stronger.

The cavalrymen looked at the heavily fortified gates and were somewhat helpless. They had just tried to take advantage of the situation to storm the inner city, but were driven back by a hail of crossbow bolts from the city walls.

Although the heavy armor prevented any casualties, many were wounded by the powerful crossbow bolts and had to retreat temporarily to prevent their warhorses from being damaged.

The cavalry were at their wits' end, but when Colin arrived and saw what was happening, he knew it was time for his men to come in handy...

43. Capturing the City (3)

"Any idea what to do?"

Tersolius washed his hands by the fountain, watching the dried blood on them turn into red threads that flowed into the clear water, along the canal, and all the way to the moat outside the city... The city's structure was quite ingenious; with such a well and fountain, no matter how long it was surrounded, the city's water supply could be guaranteed to remain unaffected.

The city wall was constructed from thick marble blocks, with extremely narrow gaps between each block, bound together with the finest adhesive. Even a heavy catapult wouldn't be able to break it down for at least a month...

In addition, the city's main output is grain, so there are a total of 13 warehouses, each filled with mountains of grain, enough to feed the entire city's residents for a whole year with a surplus...

Add to that the towering structures every 20 steps, riddled with arrow slits and battlements, and it's chilling to think what if there were a large number of archers guarding them...

Tersolius estimated that even if he brought a full army of tens of thousands of men, it would take him several months to conquer the city.

But now the city has fallen into his hands, and he has paid no price or suffered no loss... it's practically free.

A pale-faced young man from Hols was pushed and shoved in front of him. This was the city lord's son. It was thanks to him and another well-known figure in the city that Colin and his mountain people were able to sneak into the city without any hindrance.

When the guy could barely stand when he saw him, Tersolius knew that he was terrified and only wanted to survive. So he changed his plan on the spot, having Colin hide behind him and using his small stature to his advantage, he kidnapped the guy and rushed into the city.

As expected, facing the dagger pressed against his back, the young man, though flustered and stammering, never uttered a warning, allowing them to seize the city.

Now, facing Tersolius's questioning, he was horribly pale, unable to stand, and knelt on the ground... completely disregarding his image, he burst into tears.

After washing his hands, Thesolius shook them slightly to remove most of the water before slowly saying:

“I’m not an unreasonable person. You can cry as much as you want until you feel you’ve cried enough… and then we can talk about cooperation.”

The young man suddenly stopped crying, raised his head sharply, and lunged at Tersolius, desperately reaching for his eyes with his fingers, wanting to blind this despicable imperial man completely!

But he was completely unaware that the short girl next to him was looking at him with an expression of awe and surprise...

In the blink of an eye, the scenery in his eyes began to spin rapidly. Before he could react, his body had already crashed heavily onto the stone pavement. A crisp cracking sound came from his fingers, and intense pain shot through his entire body.

The pain was so intense that it penetrated his lungs, causing him to open his mouth wide and veins to bulge on his forehead, yet he couldn't utter a sound.

They could only gasp for breath, "ho, ho, ho ho," and the two of them huddled together like a boiled shrimp.

Saliva dripped from the corner of his mouth, but he no longer had the strength to wipe it away. He could only writhe on the floor in humiliation, like a stupid slave.

But unimaginable resentment and anger were building in his eyes. At this moment, he was like a brave fighter, still resisting fiercely after the enemy occupied his homeland.

But Thesolius didn't even flinch:

"Perhaps you think you have other options, but I must let you know that from the moment you entered the city gates without warning, you became a traitor to this city... No matter what reasons or excuses you give yourself, you have undeniably allowed us into this city and destroyed your father's rule..."

As he spoke, the fully armored man crouched down, reached out and grabbed the Hols man's golden hair, forcing him to look up at him:

"When you led your troops to their complete annihilation, you did not resist me. When you were captured and brought before me, you did not challenge me. When you lost to my standard-bearer, you begged for mercy. When you entered the city gate, you remained silent. But now you have the courage to attack me. Let me guess where your courage comes from?"

The Hols' head slammed to the ground, causing him to grunt. But the expression on his face grew increasingly uneasy and panicked... He seemed genuinely terrified of what the other was about to say.

He desperately reached out, trying to grab the other person's foot, which was encased in iron armor, but the foot pressed heavily down on his wrist.

"It's because we've already arrived in the inner city, and you think we need to rely on you to get in, and you're certain we won't be killed... right?"

Amidst the sudden, agonizing screams, a cold smile crept across Thesolius's lips. Looking into the Holstein's despairing eyes, he spoke, word by word:

"You are still a coward who wants to live after all... No matter how you try to escape, that is the truth... Your only choice now is to continue helping us, to keep going down this path. There are no other options."

"The reason you suddenly mustered up courage here is probably because you have other plans, right? You want others to see it, you want your father to see it, you want the residents of this city to see it."

"You think you have something to rely on, so your life won't be threatened. Only in this way can your shameful deeds be covered up, your cowardly behavior be concealed, and you can continue to enjoy your wealth and glory!"

"When we leave, you might become a hero who dares to resist the invaders. Your father will rely on you even more, the residents of this city will trust you even more, and even the garrison will regard you as their master... It's a really good idea."

Two cavalrymen reached out and grabbed the Hols man's hands, dragging him off the ground. The strong young man was now as limp as a noodle, unable to muster any strength.

"But unfortunately, you think too highly of yourself and too foolishly of your father. If I'm not mistaken, he already knows what's going on..."

Surrounded by heavy armor, Tersolius looked at the buildings built of fine marble in the inner city, high above, and narrowed his sharp, bright eyes, as sharp as a hawk's.

More and more archers are gathering on the city walls, looking from a distance like patches of green plants growing on marble...

44 Capturing the City (4)

In the darkness, the mountain man frowned, drawing his longbow, taut and purple, deep into the air. The arrowhead pointed high into the night sky, his eyes fixed on the torch burning on the city wall, its flame reflecting a bright light.

"Is it going to work or not? If it's not, give me back the bow."

The mountain man frowned, about to burst into curses, when he saw the bright reflection under the torch suddenly move. He knew he couldn't delay any longer; in a little while, the person would have to leave that spot...

He took a deep breath, silently estimating the angle and distance, then pulled the bow back a little more, his fingers quietly releasing the string... As the bow arm snapped back and the bowstring vibrated, the light arrow, specially made for long-range shooting, disappeared into the night sky in the blink of an eye.

Even with his eyesight, he couldn't see the sword's trajectory; he could only stare intently at the swaying helmeted head under the torchlight.

One second, two seconds... thud! Ouch!!

Two seconds later, a cry of surprise suddenly came from the city wall. A spark flew from the gleaming iron helmet, producing a dull knocking sound, and a small black shadow was also thrown out.

The crossbowman guarding the city wall was startled and quickly pulled his head back. The mountain man shook his bow in frustration, blaming it on his bad luck...

In fact, at this distance, any slight factor can greatly affect the landing point. To put it bluntly, it's all about luck... And these mountain people are indeed gambling on luck. It's just that they have been hunting in the forest since they were young, so their probability of hitting the target is much higher than that of ordinary people.

These mountain people gathered in front of the fountain in the city square, keeping their distance so as not to bother others, and then, as if playing a game, fired arrows at the archers.

Although most of the arrows would be blocked by the thick battlements and the helmets on the enemy's heads, there were always some unlucky guys who would be hit right in the face. At such a distance, even if you were hit by an arrow, it would not be easy to die; you would just suffer excruciating pain and scream in agony.

The commotion they caused here drew more and more archers, who even used their own crossbows to fire at each other.

But none of the mountain people carried torches, and it was pitch black all around. In this dark night, they hid by the fountain and kept firing arrows at the soldiers who had torches.

The archers on the city wall couldn't see anyone at all, so they could only fire arrows haphazardly in a general direction. How could they possibly hit the loosely positioned mountain people? They could only take a one-sided beating.

The soldiers had to defend the city wall, but they couldn't extinguish the torches, otherwise they wouldn't know when the enemy climbed up. So one by one, they could only shrink inside the city wall and dare not stick their heads out.

Seeing that their opponents were so badly beaten that they didn't even dare to show their heads, the mountain people laughed even more wildly and unrestrainedly. Their lawless nature suddenly became unbridled, and they started making a lot of noise and provoking each other.

Hunters in the mountains could only communicate by shouting, so each of these mountain people had a great voice, loud and penetrating, which disturbed half the city.

The city's residents huddled in their homes, trembling with fear that those terrible barbarians would suddenly break in, and every family propped their doors shut with thick bars.

………………

The attention of the entire inner city was drawn there, and on the left side of the fan-shaped city wall, the sound of armor plates rubbing together rang out continuously. Under the cover of moonlight, a full 50 armored cavalrymen, holding sabers and chain hammers, were ready for battle.

Several figures dressed in thin black clothing were making their final preparations here...

"Why do you want to go yourself? It's so dangerous! You could easily get surrounded..."

Tarina was still wearing a black cloth dress with a short coat over it to keep warm. Her voice was urgent, but so soft that it was almost inaudible unless you listened carefully.

But the girl's dissatisfaction was still clearly visible on her face, and she was obviously very opposed to Tersolius's decision.

Tersolis carried a shield in his left hand and a long sword in his right. He was not wearing his heavy armor, but only a black short coat that was completely flat and close-fitting, without any tightness.

Upon hearing the girl's words, he replied without hesitation:

"Of course, only if I go can we succeed... If we are discovered, only I can force my way in and open the door."

Seeing that the girl was about to speak again, he quickly interrupted her:

"Alright, alright, don't worry too much... I'm the champion... the bravest man in the army. After you open the door, we'll need you to heal us, so remember to hide behind them... You guys, don't forget to protect the doctor."

As soon as he finished speaking, Colin, who was also dressed in black, and several quick-handed mountain people gathered around. Seeing that the soldiers with torches on the city wall had left, they threw out the rope hooks in their hands and hooked them into the gaps between the stone bricks.

Several people grabbed the rope and slowly climbed up. Colin and the mountain people were no exception; they could even climb trees dozens of meters high to take bird eggs. Tersolius, with his long and strong limbs, climbed just as fast as them.

Seeing that she couldn't persuade him, Tarina puffed out her cheeks and stomped her foot in frustration.

After stomping, he looked anxiously at the city wall, fearing that some soldiers might be idly peeking out to watch...

But even if that were to happen, there was nothing to fear. A dozen or so skilled mountain archers had already drawn their bows and were waiting below for anyone who dared to stick their head out…

It took them a long time to climb the more than 10-meter-high city wall. Whenever a torch passed by, they would carefully lie in wait. But in the end, they climbed to the top of the wall without any problems and then slipped in smoothly.

………………

The wait that followed felt incredibly long for everyone, and their hearts pounded faster and faster in the silent night.

After an unknown amount of time, the two heavy oak city gates suddenly and slowly opened amidst the extreme terror in the eyes of the stationed soldiers…

The cavalrymen let out a cheer, their battle cries shaking the heavens. Densely packed in armor, shields raised, swords drawn, they surged into the city gates without hesitation. A small squad of garrison soldiers who tried to stop them were instantly torn apart like a tide crashing against rocks.

A dense barrage of crossbow bolts shot in from behind the door, but the cavalrymen blocked them with their heavy armor and shields. They charged in with unstoppable force, slaughtering every enemy who stood in their way.

These invincible elite troops of the era were not only unstoppable on horseback, but also unmatched in close-quarters foot combat.

Relying on their sturdy armor and superior weapons, they ruthlessly slaughtered one garrison squad after another, and in the blink of an eye, the entire inner city was ablaze with torches.

A sudden, rapid sound of hooves echoed in the center of the city. Under the dim moonlight, the cold gleam of iron armor could be faintly seen. The horses approached the inner city gate at great speed, forming a very thin column, and charged straight in like a long steel spear.

The inner city has been breached...