Cataphracts, surviving in a world full of mods

"It's truly breathtaking..."

Thesolius turned his head to look at a patch of ground illuminated by the sunlight outside the window, where extremely fine moss grew in the cracks of the ground, thriving in that small patch of cool, dampness, displaying extraordinary vitality.

"Then it's up to you, Brazil Saiyaros. I trust you won't disappoint me as always. Make them tell me everything they know... Of course, the most important thing is the true base of the Holy Order of Knowledge."

Brazilian Saiyaros bowed and accepted the order, a hint of savage pleasure on his face.

“I couldn’t be happier, sir. I would love to use these two to hone my skills…”

"And, Talina."

Tersolius turned and grabbed Tarina's shoulder, causing the girl to shudder, but she quickly regained her composure and his expression turned serious.

"We can begin now..."

There was no need to say anything extra. Talina simply nodded calmly. She was no longer the village doctor who would panic in the face of trouble. What she had experienced was something that many girls could never imagine in their entire lives, and something that many doctors would never touch even in their nightmares.

She had already experienced many hells and hardships, so this was nothing compared to what she had gone through.

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

Human bones are a very strong structure, at least for a thin knife—trying to cut through hard bone with a thin blade is often just wishful thinking on the part of an inexperienced novice, and the result they usually get is only a damaged blade and scratched bone.

Axes and long knives, which can easily cut bones, cannot be used in situations where people need to be rescued. In such cases, other tools are needed to help.

The sound of bones breaking was incredibly jarring in the quiet room, but Tarina calmly put down the pliers in her hand, looking thoughtfully at the chest cavity she had just opened.

What comes into view is a very healthy heart and two healthy lungs, both a vibrant pink color with a uniform surface and soft texture, without any suspicious lumps or white spots, beating with each breath, continuously delivering oxygen and blood to all parts of the body.

Only a small amount of blood seeped from the cut, which became even less noticeable as the blue light flashed, allowing her to calmly observe the person she was about to deal with.

Using silver tweezers, the heart was gently pushed upwards a short distance, and then the two lobes of the lungs were slightly separated to the sides. What came into view was a black sac that was twitching and trembling, with countless tiny tentacles on its surface penetrating into the surrounding flesh and blood, twitching in sync with the heartbeat.

Upon seeing the target appear, Tarina's eyes became even more sharp and cautious. She reached to the side, and Yelia knowingly handed her a slender silver needle from the tray. At the same time, she carefully took a bottle from the other tray, removed the cork, and exposed the bright red liquid inside.

This wasn't the kind of potent poison Talina usually used, or more precisely, not the kind that spreads through the bloodstream. Instead, it was a uniquely concocted corrosive liquid—and all she had to do was use this long needle, with its finely carved grooves at the end, to corrode the tentacles one by one, thus completely detaching the parasite.

This is definitely not a simple task. It requires absolute precision in controlling one's own body and extremely sharp eyesight. It's like using the tip of a knife to pick off a mosquito's wings, and then accurately removing those wings without harming the mosquito.

When there are only one or two mosquitoes, it's easy to do this, but if there are dozens or hundreds, it's enough to make your scalp tingle.

Compared to the slender tentacles, the connected heart and lungs appear much thicker and stronger. Even if they are contaminated by this small amount of liquid, it will only corrode some of the surface mucosa, causing no serious harm. Moreover, the drying and corrosion will also cause the ends of the tentacles to curl up and char, ensuring that no fish escapes the net.

Talina brought only three assistants with her. Yelia was responsible for preparing various instruments and medicines for her, another was responsible for wiping the sweat from her forehead, and the last one was responsible for dealing with the surrounding environment... At least in this situation, she still had to handle most things herself, as her assistants were not yet capable of doing so.

This was unavoidable. To reach her current level, even a very talented doctor would need at least 12 to 18 years, and the assistants' growth was far from sufficient.

She held the silver needle in her hand, its end filled with crimson liquid. After taking a deep breath, Tarina immediately began her work without hesitation. The incredibly sharp needle pierced the hair-thin tentacle with lightning speed, and after a brief pause, she swiftly withdrew it, then pierced another tentacle nearby.

Visibly, the moment she pulled out the needle, the tiny, black, glossy tentacle began to curl up, shrinking rapidly into a ball as if it had been roasted in a flame, and retracting from the thick texture of the lung.

Seeing the excellent results, Tarina no longer hesitated and moved even faster, as if cutting off a whole piece of cystic flesh with a heated knife. The black cyst was gradually peeled off with the tweezers and the sharp needles, and fine beads of blood seeped from the tainted flesh during the process, staining the originally healthy pink internal organs a scarlet red.

At this moment, the assistants on both sides worked together, using silver paddles without sharp edges to push aside the internal organs that were obstructing their view. At the same time, whenever the parasites began to stir, a short silver staff would be placed on it, and as the blue light surged over it, the slight agitation would subside.

This is a huge project, but now it seems there is a good chance of it being completed perfectly. No one dared to whisper to each other, but joy was still evident in their eyes.

The floors here are made of spotless mosaic marble, and even the ceiling has been cleaned spotless by servants. It was originally a hall used by the lord to entertain distinguished guests. It is spacious and clean and dry enough.

At this moment, sunlight streamed into the room through the window, clearly revealing the movement of dust particles in the air. However, these particles abruptly disappeared around the operating table, as if an invisible semi-circular dome had isolated everything. Only the doctors were busily working in a tense but orderly manner, while armored and armed guards stood outside. In the shadows, black robes and gray figures flashed by…

Chapter 411 The Nest (2)

A large, sticky, tangled mass of tubular material, resembling intestines, was torn from the chest cavity. It was covered in mucus and blood and was even twitching and wriggling weakly during the process. Finally, it was thrown onto a tray next to it, where it continued to tangle and spread.

It was as terrifying as a large clump of snakes mating together, and as disgusting as a large clump of tangled earthworms. The tentacles of varying sizes had evenly distributed segments, and a transparent mucus with a slight yellow tinge was evenly distributed in every area, making a unique sticky sound as it wriggled.

At this moment, a pungent, fishy smell spread, like cutting open the bellies of dozens of fat locusts and then putting them under a pottery jar to simmer for two days, only without such a strong smell of decay.

No sane person would want to get close to this thing, let alone implant it into their body. But what they are doing now is removing these things from the human body and making its host a person again.

For others, this would be an impossible feat, even bordering on the miraculous, but for Talina and her assistants, it was not an impossible task... It only required enough patience, skill, and a little bit of luck.

Fortunately, luck has been on their side until now.

The parasite located below the heart has been removed. What remains is the most difficult and dangerous parasite located in the brain, which requires opening the skull to remove. The slightest mistake could damage the target's brain, ruining their plans so far.

Of course, before taking this step, they had to sew up the guy's chest first; it wasn't good to leave his heart, liver, spleen, and lungs exposed all the time.

With skillful techniques, the torn flesh was reconnected, and the bones were put back in their original positions. The needle and thread crossed and became stained with blood, and the blood-stained steel pliers were put aside.

Opening the skull was already a familiar task. The scalp was gently peeled off the skull. The thick hair on it had already been shaved clean during the previous preparations. Then, holes were drilled and cuts were made in the skull, taking great care not to damage the white membrane underneath. After cutting away a bunch of bone powder and debris, a hole about half the size of a palm was finally opened in the predetermined location.

"Um?!"

Tarina's eyes widened suddenly, because what she saw in the gap was not the parasite she had expected, but a pink brain covered by a white membrane with wrinkles. The blood vessels on it looked quite healthy, evenly distributed, and flexible.

Previously, all the members of the Holy Order that were captured could be found to have parasitic hosts in the central area of ​​their brains, so Talina naturally placed the craniotomy there... but this time she failed and did not find the target in the intended location.

After a brief moment of surprise, Tarina composed herself and calmly prepared to open other areas to continue her search.

The clean sound of the steel saw cutting through the skull rose and fell rhythmically, slowly slicing open the skull, which was as thick as the back of the blade, while precisely controlling the force in its hand, without damaging the meninges beneath the skull.

This wasn't the first time Talina had done something like this. The very first time, it was Tersolius who did the work on the skull, fumbling around with drills, chisels, saws, and the like for quite a while, although she doubted that her adult could break the skull open even with his bare hands...

As she pondered and cut, she quickly made a long incision along the edge of the original gap, then extended it in another direction to make a vertical line. Then she could try to break the skull directly with pliers.

This step required some strength, but fortunately, Tarina was no longer the weak woman she once was. During the campaign in the south, even though he was busy every day, Tersolius never forgot to take time to train with her. Although she still couldn't last three rounds against him, she was far from being completely helpless.

Using flat-tipped forceps to clamp the skull, one person held the head still while the other used silver tweezers to push the brain open as much as possible. Tarina took a deep breath and pressed down hard.

click!

The skull broke rather unevenly from the incision, and in that instant, Tarina was overjoyed to see the long-awaited black sheen.

Cough!

Before the clamps on that half of the skull had even loosened, a faint, ominous cracking sound suddenly rang out! Right before Talina's eyes, the once shiny and elastic brain suddenly began to rapidly ooze blood droplets, and the blood plasma quickly filled the meninges below, causing that area to swell up, while the tightly bound body also began to convulse.

"not good!"

Tarina quickly reached out, but it was too late. The silver blood clot on the tray beside the wall expanded visibly, quickly spreading to most of the back of the head, and the body's convulsions abruptly stopped. The faint breathing that had been present also completely disappeared.

"...My lord, he is dead."

Yelia silently checked the other person's vital signs and quickly came to a rather disheartening conclusion... This also meant that all their work over such a long period of time had been completely wasted, and in the end they only got a corpse.

Tarina fell silent, but after a while she perked up, picked up a thin needle from the side, and carefully dipped it into the brilliant purple liquid in the glass bottle. With swift movements, she pricked the faintly visible black patch.

"It's alright. This person's body is already deeply entangled with the parasite, and we're prepared for failure... But even if we fail, there should be value in the failure. Let's continue and investigate the exact location and distribution of the head. This way, the probability of failure will be greatly reduced."

So the group immediately resumed their work, but because they were now facing a corpse, they became much bolder in their actions... At least with a corpse, there was no need to worry about minor injuries or any subsequent effects, so even the most meticulous minds could act with peace of mind.

And so, with the help of several people, another piece of skull was removed, and 70% of the brain was exposed to their eyes. The previously inconspicuous black area was now fully visible, although it was still somewhat hazy, being soaked in blood plasma and meninges.

Tarina gently sliced ​​open the meninges with a knife, then pushed them apart to the sides. The blood that had not yet congealed immediately gushed out and splashed onto the table.

The blade sliced ​​across a hard material, giving it a unique feel. Tarina raised an eyebrow and began to examine the strange object before her.

Unlike the follicles seen during the clearing process and the octopus-like hard-shelled creatures collected from the brains of the completely mutated walking corpses, what appeared before me was a creature firmly fused into the gaps in the brain. Its back had eight neatly arranged overlapping bone plates with light green spots, protecting the most vulnerable parts. Around it grew 16 hard tentacles with sharp spikes and more than 30 small soft tentacles, deeply embedded in the brain tissue.

The creature was completely dead, silently losing its activity due to the deadly poison carried by the needle... This was also to prevent the corpse from being completely taken over by the parasite and suddenly attacking people—although the other party's limbs and all movable parts had been firmly bound with strong straps, making it difficult for even a strong ox to break free, it was still necessary to be on the safe side.

Because it had lost its vitality, it was far less troublesome than when it was alive. Even its tentacles had become soft, and under the touch of the knife, they were as limp as a dead earthworm, easily separated from the brain tissue. Tarina intently observed every detail of the creature, even actively using her knife to cut open the brain tissue to examine the intertwined areas. Yelia and her two assistants took notes continuously, sketching simple yet accurate outlines on parchment with charcoal.

This is no longer a treatment; it's more like an anatomical study. Health and safety are no longer a concern. The entire body can be cut up at will, just to explore the parts one wants to see... Of course, this process is inevitably bloody. Even veterans who have split open countless heads on the battlefield might not be able to tolerate it. After all, killing someone is one thing, but chopping someone up and dismembering them is another...

Time passed, and the sunlight outside the window changed its angle many times, causing the shadows on the ground to move with it. Tarina finally let out a sigh of relief, put down the knife in her hand, and let Yelia wipe her sweat.

"...Let's bury him and get rid of him. Let's rest for a bit, and then we'll continue."

The parchment sheets were densely covered with drawings, and the parchment book next to them was also filled with records. This was invaluable research material. They had never captured a target of this magnitude before, let alone been able to analyze and study it so thoroughly.

The soldiers standing nearby immediately stepped forward and swiftly cleaned up the dismembered body. Once the operating table was cleared, the last remaining assassin they had captured—Patrick—was carried onto it.

The anesthetic was still in effect. Tarina took a deep breath, her face hardening with determination.

"start."

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

"Sigh, this little thing won't even eat bread, it's really picky."

Karila looked at the little bird in front of her with great surprise. She had been eyeing the little creature for a while, and when Tarina went to do something, she even started to touch it. What was even more interesting was that the little guy was not afraid of people at all. She wondered if it was because he had been raised from a young age. Even when Karila scratched his fluffy head, he did not have any intention of flying away.

Almost everyone thinks of feeding small animals when they come into contact with them, and Karila was no exception. After searching for a long time, she found half a dry loaf of bread in her bag. Because it was wrapped in oil paper, it was not damp. However, the little thing seemed completely uninterested and didn't even glance at the crumbs.

Seeing that the little guy wouldn't eat the carila, he wasn't angry. He simply took a bite himself, chewing as he looked at it with interest. Before long, he felt his mouth was dry and choking, and he reached for the wine flask at his waist in discomfort.

To facilitate preservation, military bread is always baked very dry, which is not only a test for teeth, but also a good exercise for one's oral elasticity and chewing muscles if there is no water or alcohol to neutralize it, until your throat can complete this difficult task.

But when she reached for her belt, she grabbed nothing. Karila paused for a moment before realizing that she hadn't brought her flask with her that morning. She had forgotten it in her haste to leave, and then went straight to breakfast, too lazy to send anyone to fetch it.

She chewed the dry bread in her mouth again with a troubled expression, feeling the loose structure rapidly absorbing the liquid in her mouth. Even her tongue felt dry, as if it had been blown by the wind for a long time. She now regretted her hasty decision.

"Here, have this. It's grape juice chilled in well water with a little honey added."

Just then, a water sac was placed on the window next to it, and Tersolius also walked to the window and looked down at the furry little creature.

Colin, who had already taken the water pouch off her waist, was somewhat embarrassed and prepared to put it back when she saw this scene. But then she saw Tersolius pull out another water pouch from somewhere and throw it directly at her.

"The grapes here are very sweet, with plenty of sugar, so the wine made from them is also quite good. Moreover, the skins and seeds are specially removed before processing, so there is no astringency at all. Unfortunately, it spoils very easily and must be consumed within one or two days."

Colin hurriedly reached out to catch it, while Carila beside him had already eagerly begun to drink it down, tilting her head back and gulping down almost half of it before letting out a long sigh. She looked down hesitantly at the dry bread in her hand, then finally put it in her mouth and chewed, this time taking smaller bites.

"I don't know when the doctors will be finished... It seems like one has already failed; I saw the body just being taken out."

"That's normal. I didn't have high hopes for this one anyway. I was mainly focusing on the second person. If everything goes smoothly, we should know what we need to know before tonight."

Before Tersolius could finish speaking, the wooden door in front of them suddenly opened, and Talina, as she walked out, took off her hat and mask, a hint of joy on her lips.

"It's a success, sir!"

Chapter 412 The Nest (3)

Sleep is an essential daily activity for everyone. No matter how strong, intelligent, or shrewd a man is, he still needs to sleep and rest, just like the wheels of a carriage, no matter how durable, need to be oiled from time to time. This applies to everyone. But sometimes sleep also means something else—you have to lose consciousness and remain in one place for a long time, completely unable to resist. During this time, many things can happen, and you have no way to interfere or stop them while you are asleep.

Patrick never imagined he would wake up like this… After leaving the Holy Order, he had once thought he could live a normal, uneventful, and safe life. At least he wouldn't have to live in fear and danger like before. Now it seems he was quite naive and arrogant back then, but even in that naivety and arrogance, he never let his guard down. He always prepared at least three escape routes and two places to rest, in case his old enemies came knocking. Every night when he went to sleep, he would deliberately set up traps in the windows and doors so that he would be awakened immediately if anything came in.

He had indeed anticipated waking up to find himself in an unfamiliar area, and he clearly remembered the scene before he lost consciousness... But the sight of a large pile of bloody tentacles on the tray beside him, the horrifying stitches on his body, the armored soldiers holding halberds standing next to him, and a large group of generals and officers who looked extraordinary and of noble status surrounding him far exceeded his most extreme expectations... To be honest, it took him a while to figure out the current situation, and then he fell into a long silence.

The parasite that had given him superhuman strength had been completely removed from his body—this was the most important thing he knew. He had now become an ordinary mortal, even a weak and crippled one. A strong soldier could easily pin him to the ground and beat him. He could no longer be as strong and agile as before, nor could he be as sharp-minded. Even strenuous physical labor was just a pipe dream, at least until his body healed.