Armored Cavalry, survive in a world full of mods

Even though she wanted to see the letter quickly, she still instructed her servants to treat them well before waiting expectantly for the letter to be handed to her. Therefore, the noblewoman didn't even let the two dim-witted soldiers bow before urging them to hand over the letter.

Kochkin and Warif's preparations were thwarted, and everyone wore expressions of regret, feeling disappointed that they hadn't performed to their full potential.

It wasn't until Christina suddenly stood up, her face showing a serious expression, that they regained their focus...

92. Undercurrents (4)

The architecture of the empire has always been renowned for its grandeur, enormous cost, and durability. As the residence of the most distinguished people in the entire empire, the Golden Palace in the capital city naturally represents the pinnacle of the empire's architectural art.

The robust marble columns have simple yet sharp lines, each requiring several people to encircle it. The massive rocks are perfectly joined together by an ingenious mechanical structure, making these majestic buildings stable and enduring.

Every floorboard was meticulously polished, leaving no uneven spots. This level of perfection was achieved in the audience hall, where one could clearly see their reflection in the floor.

The golden tiles covering the top of this palace complex are even more magnificent, so dazzling in the sunlight that they are almost blinding. Each tile is extremely expensive to produce, and no one except the emperor is allowed to touch them.

The various magnificent, exquisite, and complex structures make up this glittering architectural complex, enough to inspire awe in anyone and attract the attention of any ambitious person.

Ordinary commoners and minor nobles were not even qualified to step into this palace; in fact, any slight transgression would endanger their lives.

Only those of truly noble status and possessing honor could enter this place with the emperor's permission and be granted an audience.

Of course, there are exceptions. Some people can even come to visit without prior notice, and no one will deliberately stop them.

A finely crafted carriage slowly approached along the road. The imperial guards, wielding sharp halberds, stopped the carriage, exchanged a few words, and then opened the gates.

At the same time, a nimble messenger swiftly traversed the palace complex, delivering the message to the deepest part of the palace, to the hands of its master.

………………

Empress Claudia Augustus was having a headache in her bedroom. Thick layers of parchment were piled on her sturdy and ornate mahogany desk inlaid with gold. A few drops of ink had spilled on her sleeve, but the emperor paid them no heed.

Reports and requests from all over the empire piled up on this table, and the emperor had to make the decisions based on rational judgment and skillful adjustments.

To achieve this, having a clever mind and insight is not enough; the emperor must understand her empire and gather enough intelligence to avoid being misled by others.

Her spy chief was very talented in this area, but because the emperor's own intelligence network was still limited to the three central provinces, the information she could obtain remained limited...

Three years is not enough time for her to accomplish much... especially since she started from scratch.

Making a judgment in this situation requires determination and wisdom, as well as a certain amount of courage, and she happens to have all of those qualities...

The request from a senator to increase this year's autumn tax was rejected; a suitable pretext was used to divert attention elsewhere, winning over some wavering noble senators and suppressing some excessive speculators...

All sorts of decisions were made at this mahogany table; it was here, amidst numerous obstacles, that the emperor ruled her empire.

Three crisp knocks reached Clautina's ears, causing the emperor, whose thoughts had been interrupted, to furrow his brow slightly, but he still granted permission...

"Your Majesty, Lady Christina has arrived... and is requesting an audience outside the palace."

A rare smile appeared on the emperor's lips:

"Please come in, madam, and tidy this place up properly..."

A dark shadow suddenly flashed in the corner of the room and in the beam, but then fell silent in the blink of an eye, with only a few wisps of dust being stirred up and slowly drifting down into the air.

………………

“You should be more careful, Lina. My royal physician is not optimistic about your health. You are too fragile right now.”

Christina chuckled softly as she stroked her belly, but she was destined never to feel the expected movement.

“This time is different, Your Majesty… I have received a letter from Tersolius…”

The emperor's expression suddenly stiffened, and a hint of guilt flashed across his face.

“I don’t mean to blame you, Your Majesty… I really shouldn’t have known about this so soon, but now is just the right time… I must personally deliver this letter to you.”

………………

Claudia reached out and took the envelope, then opened it and began to read silently. For a moment, the only sound in the room was the crisp crunching of the paper.

"I knew he'd be alright..."

“He’s not just fine…” Christina shook her head with a smile, “He practically turned the Hols Kingdom upside down. He wreaked havoc on the entire south, it was like letting a lion into a sheep pen!”

“It sounds like you know more than I do, dear Christina. It must have been the messenger who told you.”

“That’s right… Please forgive me, Your Majesty, but I cannot bring them here without permission, and the news of their arrival must not be spread. So I instructed Dolores to arrange for them to stay.”

"You've done a good job." The emperor's eyes, as dark as molten gold, gleamed with thoughtful consideration. "I'll have Casati handle things later, clean up their tracks... He gave me a good plan, very worthwhile to implement. We need to start preparing now..."

"Do you need my help?"

Christina quietly asked the question.

"No, there's no need... It's not too difficult. You should rest well in the time ahead and leave everything to us."

"Then I won't ask any more questions, but don't keep it from me. I'll let it go this time, but if it happens again, I won't be so lenient."

A rare wry smile appeared on the emperor's face:

"You're still the same as before... your temper hasn't changed at all."

“Aren’t you the same? Even though you’re the emperor now, you’re still the same person. You always want to make all the decisions yourself… At most, you’ll discuss things with Tersolius… We’ve always listened to you, and that’s how it was in the past, and it will be in the future.”

————————————————————————————

Schemers always prefer dark environments, as if in dim light they can hide the darkness in their hearts and not be easily discovered.

Arius had lost a lot of weight. The once bloated fat man now looked haggard. His once expensive and gorgeous robes were now stained with oil at the collar and cuffs, clearly indicating that they hadn't been changed for a long time.

"Rostoia! You promised me, you promised me! But now you've betrayed me, leaving me a prisoner to be slaughtered, you damned oath-breaker!!"

"Shut up, you idiot!"

A richly dressed, muscular man lowered his voice and slammed a punch into Arius's face, his expression one of utter exasperation.

"If it weren't for you, you idiot, taking matters into your own hands, how could we be in such a passive position?!"

Arius was knocked to the ground by the heavy punch, two broken teeth fell from the corner of his mouth with blood and foam, and even his eyes became blurry.

"I told you to take this opportunity to weaken Thales's forces, inflict more casualties on his cavalry, and gain more advantages for us... but you can't even do this simple thing right! You actually betrayed him in front of the army! Do you know how much we paid to clean up your mess!"

"If it weren't for our help, you would have been arrested and thrown into that prison the moment you were defeated! Why would you have waited until now!"

"If Tersolius had died in the south, it would have been fine; there would have been ways to excuse him... But he fought his way out, and now the entire empire is praising his achievements! Don't you understand now? Once he steps one foot through the bronze gates of the capital, you are destined to pay a heavy price for your foolishness."

“We have done everything we could, and it was your own stupidity that ruined you… You know what to do to avoid implicating all of us… As long as you stop being so foolish, the family will absolutely not be affected.”

Arius's lips trembled slightly, and a look of despair appeared in his eyes:

"You mean..."

"Give us a good performance. If you perform well enough, everything will end properly and we can give everyone an explanation... This is not a discussion, but a notification and an order."

………………

You idiot! You idiot! You idiot!!

Rostoia almost ground his teeth to powder. Although he knew that many of his colleagues were of questionable ability, he still felt despair that such an idiot could sit in such a position.

If it weren't for the family behind this fat pig, he would have wanted to get rid of this good-for-nothing from the beginning, and there wouldn't have been so much trouble later on.

There might be some kind of conspiracy involved, or he might have just made a stupid mistake, but that doesn't matter now...

Tersolius will arrive in a little over a week at most, and they must be prepared before then... otherwise, if the emperor takes advantage of the situation, they will all be embarrassed.

He needs to prepare early...

With a throbbing pain in his temples, the strong man gritted his teeth and covered half of his face, feeling his teeth ache as well. He left the circular building with his head down the entire time.

After boarding his carriage, he finally relaxed and lay down, but his mind was still racing.

A sense of confusion crept into my mind silently… The Senate considered itself the representative of the Empire, but could such foolish people truly represent the Empire? Was it merely because of their illustrious families and noble birth that even such incompetent individuals could hold such high positions?…

Even he had to suffer because of this, and spend a huge amount of money to cover up for this fool... It was like using a pile of gold coins to fill a trench—a complete waste, and he completely offended the emperor, becoming a thorn in His Majesty's side!

For the first time, this man in a high position of power was filled with such profound doubt, but no one was destined to tell him the answer...

93 Pests

“Keep being stupid, just like you did before. Oh, and by the way, this is also your father’s wish. After receiving so much, it’s time for you to contribute to your family.”

"If you still can't muster even a shred of courage, when Tersolius returns, when those cavalrymen trapped in dire straits return... you won't be the only one paying the price... It's a simple and obvious calculation, isn't it?"

"Your brothers and family will be spared, as promised by the Chief Elder... This is also to pay the price for the terrible consequences of your foolishness. You should understand what this means..."

………………

Arius stared wide-eyed, his eyes bloodshot, having remained in this position for an entire night. His once magnificent robes were now wrinkled and crumpled, and his once neatly trimmed beard was now unkempt, covered in food scraps and glistening saliva and snot.

In the midst of extreme fear and anger, time seemed to drag on endlessly, and the mind became muddled, as if one had been placed in a giant cauldron, constantly enduring torment, with chaotic thoughts almost bursting through the skull.

The room wasn't damp at all; in fact, it was quite comfortable. It had well-placed windows that ensured ample natural light, and it was cleaned daily, so there were no bedbugs or trash. Chilled wine and various delicacies were delivered to the table on time. He'd only been there for two weeks, but he'd already lost a lot of weight.

His current status is that of a "Temo" awaiting questioning... meaning a person awaiting trial. Although he will not be mistreated, he has no power and can only stay here until the emperor and the Senate issue a formal verdict.

Thinking about what he was about to face, Arius trembled with extreme fear. His eyes were deep-set, his skin was dark, and his greasy hair was matted. Although his lips were chapped, he did not reach for the wine beside him.

His gaze shifted to a shard of ceramic on the floor… It was something he had smashed in a fit of rage a couple of days ago, and the servants hadn’t dared to come in and clean it up, so it had just been left there.

This looks like a piece of junk, but it's hard and sharp... With determination, you can do a lot.

His fingers trembled as he picked up the jagged ceramic shards, staring at their sharp, canine-tooth-like edges... The vicissitudes of life were beyond his imagination.

Just over three months ago, he still held immense power and, with the support of his family and the Senate, led a large army south.

Just over two months ago, although he was terrified by what he had done and was scared to death when his father scolded him, he always had this confidence. He knew that the Senate would never abandon him because he had done what they said. Even if he did not do it well and made mistakes, someone would definitely cover for him... not only because of his father, but also because he knew that he must not reveal what he knew.

The vast majority of generals in the army were senators and their sons, just like himself… For their own benefit, they wouldn't spread the news. Apart from the generals, no other officer was qualified to know the true nature of this betrayal.

The remaining minority are also easy to deal with; either coercion or bribery, or simply silencing them completely, there are always ways...

It would require a considerable amount of sacrifice to achieve this, but he remained confident that he could evade it.

And all of this collapsed in that extreme time because Thesolius survived!

If he survives, he can easily prove his lies, and as a shameful traitor, he has no other choice...

The ceramic shards in his hands trembled more and more, but he didn't move forward even a little bit. The fear of death overwhelmed him... He had never been a brave person, but now even his father had given up on him.

His fingers were still trembling, and amidst the extreme fear, other emotions suddenly arose—an extreme resentment and anger.

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

"Why did you come back alive?!"

He almost screamed this in his heart through gritted teeth!

"It would have been better if you had died in the South! Why did you have to come back alive? If you hadn't come back, things wouldn't have gotten so bad!"

He repeated the name Tersolius over and over again, as if he were chewing it up with his teeth. He didn't even notice that his tongue was being bitten until it bled. His wide eyes were bloodshot with madness, and the sharp ceramic shards in his hand were embedded in his skin, tearing off a small piece of flesh.

He no longer felt anger towards those who abandoned him, but instead transferred his hatred to Teresolus.

If this person hadn't returned alive from the south, I would never have ended up in this predicament. Everything I have now is thanks to him!

Intense emotions surged through Arius's mind, causing him to throw away the shards of ceramic in his hand and completely abandon the idea of ​​ending his own life.

“That’s right, as long as you die, everything will be fine, as long as you’re dead! As long as you’re dead…”

As if he had grasped some key point, a twisted smile appeared on his lips, and he began to shout loudly, raising his hands and flying them around wildly, bumping around the room like a headless fly.

"As long as you're dead!... Fritz! Fritz, where are you! Come here, come here, I have something to tell you, go and find Fritz, go and find my squire!"

He pounded on the door frantically, shouting wildly down the corridor, his eyes gleaming with a crazed excitement.

"Come here right now, I have a brilliant idea!"

His voice echoed through the building, and the guards exchanged glances, a look of panic flashing in their eyes.

"He must be insane, listen to his voice!"

"That's right! There must be an evil spirit dwelling in his throat!"

"Alright, stop spreading rumors here! Watch your tongues!"

The captain of the guard rushed over, glared at the whispering soldiers, and then strode quickly toward the direction from which the noise was coming.

The soldiers exchanged glances and fell silent, but their eyes showed that they were not about to give up on the matter so easily.

Not long after, the captain of the guards, who had just gone in, came out with a helpless expression.

"Herichius, you go and fetch Lord Fritz. Tell him Lord Aristotle has something to discuss with him... Hurry up, don't delay on the way, we can't afford to offend anyone here!"