Cataphracts, surviving in a world full of mods

This kind of work is no easier than heavy physical labor such as building houses and paving roads. The highly developed human brain consumes a lot of energy, and under such high-intensity use, people can easily feel tired.

Even Tersolius could feel the sticky warmth in his palms. Although he remained unmoved and expressionless on the surface, he couldn't help but feel worried, fearing that even after these intelligent imperial scholars had tried their best, they would still be unable to salvage the dire situation.

Claudia, sitting next to him, was almost scraping the corner of the table with her fingernails, and she was doing so unconsciously. She was as calm and composed as he was, sitting steadily on the carved wooden chair.

As for Natamus... he had already torn off a large piece of bark from the poor apple tree in the yard, revealing the smooth trunk. This general, who had won many battles, could only relieve his stress in this way now.

The situation was always full of twists and turns. Before long, the scholars who were working hard on the calculations suddenly became restless. Many of them frowned, whispered among themselves, sighed, and pointed at the parchment in their hands, looking like they had encountered a problem.

This sight made everyone around feel uneasy. Fortunately, Natamus had already been ushered into the courtyard, otherwise his fiery-tempered older brother would definitely have been unable to sit still.

The emperor beside her frowned, seemingly wanting to say something. But Teresus suddenly placed his fingers on the hem of her dress and gave it a very subtle tug.

The emperor, who had been preparing to rise, abandoned his half-finished action and returned to his previous posture without issuing any orders.

The gray-haired woman in the white robe was clearly the leader of all the scholars. These intelligent people all respected her greatly. Seeing the situation, she quickly came over and joined the discussion, temporarily putting aside her own work.

This action proved remarkably effective. With everyone's combined efforts, and after three attempts, they solved the current problem and then swiftly threw themselves into the next phase of their work.

………………

An old man with a resolute face, as if sculpted by a knife, stood atop a tall tower and sighed. His white hair, though withered and split, was still thick, making him appear radiant and full of energy.

This is the highest point in the entire Xicheng District. The large bronze clock next to it rings every night, morning, and noon to mark the time for the citizens of Xicheng District.

This is by no means a comfortable place. The cold wind at this height will quickly take away the body's heat, and the narrow foothold makes this place seem dangerous, especially for elderly people of this age, who are at risk of falling just by standing here.

But he remained standing there steadily, like a marble statue, his gaze fixed on a certain area, with only his hair being blown by the breeze.

A sudden gust of wind swept by, but it only managed to stir his robes and the tips of his hair. The large clock beside him swayed slightly, and a clear, metallic chime emanated from his feet and spread outwards. A small bird with black feathers flew past him and landed on the head of the eagle statue carved from hard rock outside the tower.

There's only one person here, and only one person can stand here... He will only allow one person here.

That's why no one could know the sorrow and torment in his heart. Extreme worry was tugging at his heart, which made him unable to resist coming here and gazing into the distance at that familiar-looking building.

He may not know many things, but he couldn't possibly be unaware of his daughter's situation—he probably knew even earlier than Tetsorius… but there was very little he could do, so little that it left the old man helpless.

The old man didn't know who did it. Given their current position, they were destined to face treacherous attacks from the shadows. After all, while such underhanded methods were despicable, they were effective enough to produce unexpected results in many situations.

Since the last attack, he had secretly strengthened the protection around his daughter to ensure that no threat could get close to her... but now, the situation has still come to this.

The howling wind made his large robes cling tightly to his body, continuously drawing heat away from him, and his shoulders, neck, and chest began to feel cold and stiff.

Only when a small portion of the sun was obscured by the distant mountains, and the red sunset enveloped the entire city, and the bells in other areas had already begun to ring, and the nearby residents were starting to complain about the bell ringer's laziness, did the old man slowly turn his head and climb down the ladder alone.

A few minutes later, a simple horse-drawn carriage slowly drove through the street at a very low speed. Inside, an old man who had been resting with his eyes closed gently clenched his right hand into a fist.

Whoever did this must pay the price... It's not enough, it's far from enough.

-----------------------

In his excitement, the nib of the brass pen pierced the supple parchment and bent against the hard mahogany table. The user, clearly unconcerned about the damaged pen, carelessly tossed the ink-stained pen aside and excitedly stood up, shouting:

"It's a success! It's a success! I have the results!"

His words caused a great stir; as soon as he finished speaking, everyone around him was drawn to him and eagerly moved closer.

"It's out! It's out!"

Another scholar excitedly threw down his pen. These scholars, who were completely absorbed in their work, were oblivious to the actions around them.

"Alright, I've figured it out!"

…………

Amidst the cheers of joy, the scholar's leader, Perilaya, was not overly pleased and immediately issued new instructions:

"Check and verify immediately! We must make sure everything is absolutely correct!"

As soon as they finished speaking, the scholars resumed their work without hesitation, but their movements were much faster than before, eliminating the need for complicated thought processes and making their objectives clear and specific.

After some time, the final result finally came to the emperor and Tersolius.

"Your Majesty, Your Excellency, after multiple calculations, we can now confirm that, based on the location markers, this suspicious object should be located in this place!"

As she spoke, Perilaya pointed to the empty Fallen City, causing everyone to turn their heads to look. What came into view was an apple tree with a large piece of bark peeled off. Natamus, clad in heavy armor, stood under the tree in a daze, occasionally reaching out to tear off a piece of bark and then carefully shredding it into strips in his hand.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

With a crisp sound of wood being pierced and breaking, the gleaming greatsword was forcibly pulled out by terrifying violence, revealing a huge gash filled with damp moisture, with large amounts of wood chips and bark scattered on the surrounding grass.

Natamus raised his greatsword high again, let out a furious roar, and swung it to cut off the last third of the tree. The not-so-tall apple tree crashed to the ground with a loud thud, its branches snapping.

The servants and guards immediately rushed forward and hurriedly dragged away the felled apple tree, leaving only wood chips scattered on the grass and a bare stump.

Tarina turned and went into the room. A short while later, she came out with a serious expression and shook her head at everyone.

The scholars immediately began to discuss in hushed tones, each with a puzzled look on their faces. Some even grabbed the parchment they had just examined and began to panic.

Natamus's face turned cold, and he deflated as he slashed his sword into a nearby tree stump. The fresh stump cracked with a crisp sound, revealing a visible crack.

Even the emperor turned his questioning gaze to Perilaya, and the gray-haired woman calmly stepped forward two steps:

“Your Majesty, I can confirm that our calculations are correct. After eliminating all possibilities, this is the only feasible location…and these signs don’t seem like it…”

"I think the scholars did not make any calculation errors..."

Tersolius suddenly stood up, squinting slightly as he examined the cracked tree stump. A black mark, four or five inches deep, was embedded in the center of the stump; it was unclear whether it was from insect bites or disease.

However, a damp tree stump should not crack so easily as it does dry wood—wood full of moisture is more resilient and much harder to split than dry wood.

With that thought in mind, he no longer hesitated and ordered his servants and guards to uproot the tree stump.

This task shouldn't be too easy. Even the weakest tree has a complex network of roots and tendrils, making it difficult to move without removing enough soil.

But this wooden stake easily surprised everyone... It was as if someone had deliberately found a wooden stake for a prank and buried it shallowly on the surface. With just a slight shake and a few digs, the remaining stake and its massive root system were easily unearthed.

Sure enough, there was a very deep black wound at the bottom of the cracked wooden stake, making the area particularly empty, which is why it cracked open immediately after being struck by a sword.

After the black wound was split open, everything inside was finally revealed to everyone—a small pink mass was slowly wriggling, a small green leaf was curled up, and an inconspicuous pebble was carved with an inverted triangle pattern, which was perfectly embedded in the gap of the roots...

The vast majority of these should not be found at the bottom of a tangled mess of dark, damp tree roots, full of artificial traces, which even the most foolish person can easily see.

All this mess, including tree stumps and the entire layer of soil beneath them, was hauled away by trucks. The surrounding turf was also uprooted, leaving behind a bare, four-foot-square area with holes.

The scholars breathed a sigh of relief, and soon their spirits lifted. The volume of their discussions grew louder and louder, eventually becoming quite boisterous. Many of them had flushed faces, excitedly waving their drafts, overjoyed at this resounding success.

Natamus, who was waiting in the courtyard, could no longer wait. With heavy footsteps, he rushed upstairs to the second floor, stood stiffly outside the room, and began to wait silently.

Time passed, and just as the thin moonlight began to bathe the world, a loud cry suddenly came from the house. The servants' hurried and joyful cheers were clearly audible, and the baby's breathing grew louder and louder.

As clean hot water and other necessities were brought in, Tersolius finally let out a long sigh of relief...

Chapter 203 Rebirth (1)

The newborn baby did not look cute. It was wet and pale all over, and wrinkled, like a hairless rat. Its facial features were swollen and protruding, and it let out a loud, slightly shrill cry.

If any other creature possessed these characteristics, it would only evoke genuine disgust. But if it were an infant, it would inspire pity at first sight, making one want to hold this tiny creature, no bigger than a kitten, in their arms.

The umbilical cord, still streaked with blood, had been cut. Tarina carefully washed the remaining liquid off the baby with warm water, then dried him with a soft cashmere towel and wrapped him in a blanket.

Natamus, who had been extremely agitated just moments before, fell silent. Instead of immediately checking on his child, he went to his extremely weak and still immobile wife.

Christina, pale-faced and covered in sweat, had her hair stuck to her face, looking rather disheveled. Dolores was tidying up her mistress with a clean towel. The sheets were soaked with sweat, and the servants were quickly changing them.

Natamus stood by the bed and bent down. The metallic sound of the plates of his heavy armor rubbing together woke his drowsy wife, causing her bright black eyes to open again.

Those eyes blurred slightly for a moment, then they captured him, and a faint smile appeared on her pale face.

"Finally, this little thing is born... This little rascal almost killed me, maybe more than half... You'll have to come hunting with me afterward, you said it before, now you have no reason to back out, right?!"

Natamus's expression was as hard as steel; his lips trembled slightly as he squeezed out a single word:

"……it is good."

"My bow hasn't been used for too long, and it might have been eaten away by insects. If it's really broken, you have to buy me a new one."

"it is good."

“This time we can go further. I’ve heard that there are goats with horns like swords on the mountains of Farikal.”

"Then let's go there."

…………

Leaving the couple alone to be tender, Thessalius approached the tiny baby and, with a hint of curiosity, lifted the blanket:

"I forgot to ask earlier, is the child a boy or a girl?"

"Boys and girls are both available."

Tersolius looked up in confusion, his expression suddenly changing as if he were thinking of something terrible. But before he could say anything, Talina continued:

"The lady gave birth to twins, and there's another child over there, didn't you see?"

Seeing the other person's puzzled look, Tersolius looked up and saw a small basket by the bed, with a white, soft little hand waving and grasping at it. It was easy to miss if you didn't look carefully.

He coughed slightly awkwardly, reached out and lifted the basket from the ground. Inside was another wrinkled, chubby child, making babbling noises and kicking its little arms and legs around.

Tersolis moved closer with interest, and the small hand moved to his face with lightning speed, then grabbed a strand of his hair with all its might and pulled it hard.

The sudden stinging pain made his brow twitch, then he couldn't help but laugh out loud. It took him a while to get the tiny hand, no bigger than a walnut, off his hair.

"She's quite energetic, little girl, she didn't cry at all... Is our girl the older sister or the younger sister?"

Tarina was busy soothing the fussy little boy in her arms. The boy was exceptionally energetic, seemingly possessing inexhaustible energy from birth, his cries loud and prolonged.

"Girls are born first, then adults."

The child became increasingly fussy, and Tarina could no longer soothe him. A troubled expression appeared on her face until Christina was drawn by the child's cries and reached out her hand. Only then did Tarina breathe a sigh of relief and place the little one in his mother's arms.

The effect was immediate. The piercing howls that had been blaring just moments before subsided and disappeared. Perhaps it was the familiar scent that calmed the boy down.

"So you must be the older sister, Ferncitara. What a quiet little one."

When I took the girl out of the basket, it felt as light as dragging a fallen leaf. Even through the thick blanket, I could feel her boneless softness, so fragile and tender that it was hard to believe.

"It seems both names will come in handy. This is great news, and we should celebrate."

The emperor leaned close to Tersolius, reached out his slender fingers and gently touched the baby's cheek. He was startled by the incredibly soft touch, but couldn't help reaching out to stroke it again.

Theolys's expression was now somewhat tense—he had never imagined that a newborn baby would be so soft and light to hold. He felt that if he applied even a little more force, this tiny life would shatter like fragile porcelain.

So he didn't dare to put any force into his palm, as if he were holding a large block of jelly, letting the soft little thing lie in his hand.

"It looks a bit ugly. Shouldn't babies be chubby and fair-skinned?"