Cataphracts, surviving in a world full of mods

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...

Chapter 93 Harmful Beasts

“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!"

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

Warm spring water flows from the mouth of the marble lion, which is carved from marble. The stone slabs are sealed together with an adhesive made of limestone, so that not a drop of water can seep out.

The billowing heat filled the room with mist, and the humid, gentle heat felt unique against the skin, making one's consciousness become hazy.

Braziers blazed in every corner of the room, and small windows nearby ensured a good supply of oxygen, allowing the flames to burn brightly and illuminate every corner.

Tersolius let out a long breath, his entire body from the neck down immersed in the warm spring water, his bones relaxing completely.

He lifted his wet hair from his forehead; his overgrown hair had been trimmed and was now neat and tidy, no longer obstructing his view.

This was the first time he had the chance to properly wash himself in the bathroom since escaping death... Previously, for various reasons, unless his head was covered in blood, it was a luxury to clean his whole body properly.

His time and energy should have been allocated to where they were more needed at the time. He even compressed his sleep time to the extreme, spending every day surrounded by blood and dust.

Fortunately, the weather wasn't too hot, otherwise the bloodstains seeping into his armor and clothes would have rotted and stinked—just like those of bandits and robbers who raided the mountains and forests.

A smile suddenly appeared on his lips, and he leaned back, resting his back and the back of his head against the stone platform.

This is a city called Pontra. Once you pass through here, you won't be far from the capital of the empire. There is a famous active volcano here, but it has been more than 70 years since its last eruption and it is still relatively quiet.

Pontra was built on the side of a towering mountain, and thanks to its natural geothermal resources, its renowned warm springs attracted wealthy merchants and citizens from all over the empire.

For the people of the Empire, a city must have a large bathhouse—not only is it a place for citizens to clean themselves, but it is also an important social venue where countless pieces of information are exchanged, and people have long been accustomed to asking for news here.

The city's bathhouses must be built large enough to accommodate a large number of people. If possible, efforts can be made in decoration and reliefs to bring dignity and glory to the city's owners.

The spring water here naturally has a suitable temperature, which saves a lot of costs. All that is needed is a ceramic pipe to continuously bring this warm water into the bathhouse.

For this reason, the city's bathhouse was built to be exceptionally large and luxurious. Countless intricate carvings and massive stone pillars covered the circular building, and even the floor was outlined with bright patterns using metal wire. It was perfect in every aspect.

It's worth mentioning that when he entered the city with that enormous lion skin, the commotion it caused almost made him think a volcano was about to erupt...

He took no action, and the entire city's residents were already in a frenzy of celebration.

The city lord, who arrived at the scene, explained the situation to him, and also answered the question that had been nagging at him while he was hunting lions outside the city.

The lions only appeared in the vicinity two months ago, and at that time, most of the city's garrison was forcibly taken away by Consul Arios, leaving the remaining soldiers with great difficulty in maintaining order.

Moreover, this pride of lions had a clever leader who began attacking humans after only half a month... Sometimes they would even ignore herds of fat cattle and specifically target humans, whom they considered easy to hunt.

Often, by the time the city receives the news and sends troops to the scene, the lions have already finished their hunt and fled, leaving behind only the ruins of the attacked village and the howling crowd.

There were over a hundred lions in the pride. Without an army, no one would dare to go against them... Even if an experienced hunter managed to kill one or two lions by chance, it would be to no avail, as these damned beasts continued to launch attacks.

The sparse militia and garrison were already stretched thin just defending cities and towns, making it impossible for them to take the initiative to hunt down these pests.

No one knows where so many lions came from. Previously, there weren't many lions here, not even enough to threaten the village's livestock.

And it just so happened that it emerged when the local army was at its weakest... During that time, the city lord was overwhelmed with problems every day, and the attack reports from various villages piled up on his table.

This pride of lions was like a well-trained enemy army, attacking in completely random locations.

News of a lion attack came from an important livestock town on Monday, and a tragedy was expected to occur in another market far away on Wednesday, causing panic throughout the entire Pontra area.

After nightfall, people would nail their doors and windows shut with wooden planks and lead their important cattle, sheep, and livestock directly into their houses, hoping that the fearsome wild beasts would not visit their village.

Seeing that they couldn't catch any trace of the lions, and that only seven or eight lions had been hunted down because they couldn't escape in time, in order to prevent greater losses, the master of Pontra had no choice but to order his subordinate villages to stop all production activities and for everyone to be on high alert to guard against attacks from wild animals.

This method worked immediately; the lions' attacks failed several times, leaving behind more than a dozen carcasses.

But the pedestrians and caravans on those roads continued to be attacked, and the villages and towns that had ceased production and trade suffered enormous losses every day, while the aid requested by the Empire would not arrive for some time.

Just when everyone was in a state of panic, Tersolius and his legion arrived at the city entrance with more than eighty lion skins, which immediately ignited the tension among the people and dispelled their fear of lions.

He arrived here with a sense of accountability, only to find himself a hero who saved the city... He was almost caught off guard...

Unsurprisingly, they were all given the warmest hospitality, and every soldier was able to drink fine wine and enjoy hot bread and roast meat.

Thesolius and his brother were naturally invited to the most luxurious bathhouse and received the highest level of hospitality.

The other two people in the bath were the city lord and Natamus. As a servant handed them a tray, the white-bearded city lord raised his wine cup high in respect.

Chapter 94 Variables (1)

Tersorius was always well aware of how difficult it was to keep a public place clean and hygienic, how much manpower and cost was involved, and how, without effective oversight and substantial investment, sanitation could deteriorate at an alarming rate.

Putting aside other things, if the water in a bathhouse is not changed after one or two hundred people have washed in it, it will become a breeding ground for bacteria and filth, continuously polluting those who come afterward.

In this situation, bathhouses will not only fail to benefit people's physical and mental health, but will also plunge the entire city's sanitation into a terrible state.

Not to mention the chaotic state of the bathhouse, where countless prostitutes and vendors made their living, and the garbage and corpses of dead babies piled up in the sewers, rotting and fermenting together with the killed cats and dogs...

In cases of mismanagement, these problems will only worsen, turning public bathhouses, which were originally meant to maintain personal hygiene, into breeding grounds for germs and epidemics.

He had seen many accounts of plagues in Rome and descriptions of the terrible conditions in bathhouses, so he was terrified of such places.

But the lord's private bathhouse was clearly not among them. Servants would thoroughly clean the pool every day, removing trash and limescale, and polishing the floor until it was smoother than a mirror.

The hot water in the bath was changed every few hours to ensure that distinguished guests received the best hospitality. In addition, various wines and fruits were soaked in the well water, making it a pleasure for everyone.

The city's public bathhouse is far better than those in other places. The ceramic pipes laid early on provide a continuous supply of warm spring water, making water changes very easy—even a frail old man can do it.

Moreover, the city lord here hires workers to thoroughly clean the sewers every two months, prohibits prostitutes and merchants from operating here, and the bathhouse is divided into pools for a dozen or so people each... so it's not nearly as bad as he thought.

That's why the pool water here is at least quite clear, making it safe for people to walk into.