Chapter 212: Mutants
Another transit town in the Central Northland was destroyed under the impact of the rebels. However, this batch of rebels was a bit strange; each one was grotesquely deformed. Even Quasimodo standing among them would be considered handsome.
Because their appearance was too intimidating, the townspeople couldn’t exert even 30% of their strength. After all, not many could hold on when surrounded by a group of demons and monsters.
Unfortunately, failure was not the end but the beginning of hell.
These were all carriers infected with the Flesh and Blood Plague. Their flesh and blood had begun to mutate severely.
The mutation wouldn’t have been so fast originally, but they were cannibals, causing the mutation to accelerate as if it were on steroids. It not only affected their bodies but also their minds. Right now, these mutants were like a combination of lunatics and monsters. Their purpose in breaking into this town wasn’t to plunder but to eat.
Wailing and screaming couldn’t stop the bloodthirsty mutants. They rushed into the town impatiently. Whether dead or alive, there was no difference to the mutants. Only by biting and tearing flesh could they alleviate the pain caused by their continuous mutation, and they would stop at nothing to do so.
As fresh flesh and blood went down their throats, the mutants’ injuries healed quickly, and they became more deformed and stronger. Some mutants even grew extra organs, such as eyes, arms, intestines, and so on. In short, they looked less and less human. This scene was witnessed by the two Counts in the distance.
Countess Ferrier, clad in rose gold silk light armor and a luxurious fur cloak, rode a white steed. She stood with Count Solari, who led a team of elite cavalry, under the protection of several sturdy knights.
Compared to the Countess’s luxurious attire, Count Solari, in silver-gray plate armor, seemed a bit inconspicuous. However, set against the backdrop of the elite cavalry behind him, his imposing manner overshadowed even Countess Ferrier. After all, even the most delicate rose could only be crushed into mud under an iron fist, unless the flower was poisonous.
“We can’t delay any longer,” Countess Ferrier said with a gloomy face.
“Yes, we can’t wait any longer,” Count Solari nodded in agreement.
But then an awkward silence fell between the two, like a middle-aged couple who had nothing to say after dinner.
It wasn’t that they didn’t know what to do next but that they were reluctant to speak first.
Because they only had three options now: the first was to go back and hold their ground, the second was to go to the Imperial Border Army for help, and the third was to join forces and send troops.
Everyone knew that going back to defend was a dead end, and asking the Imperial Border Army for help was also futile. So, they only had the third option.
Ironically, one was a smooth talker with admirers all over the Imperial Border, and the other was of noble birth with close ties to the Imperial Border Army.
But in the face of the current situation, these were all useless. They had obviously become sacrificial lambs and could only rely on self-rescue.
“There are three points in the Northland now. Since we’re under such great pressure, shouldn’t the other side also bear some?” Countess Ferrier’s sudden words plunged Count Solari into deep thought.
“I can send my cavalry to lead these mutants further north, but I need bait, sufficiently tempting bait,” Count Solari said.
“I’ll take care of the bait,” Countess Ferrier said confidently.
Curse-Slayer Ferrier, the former second-in-command of the Northland Witch Alliance, was deeply immersed in role-playing and had long forgotten about the Witch Alliance. However, her abilities were undeniable. Originally skilled in curses, she had actually managed to concoct something when facing the Flesh and Blood Plague, which was also rooted in curses: a kind of cursed flesh and blood that was extremely tempting to the mutants.
“Be careful. Just a little bit of this is enough to drive the mutants crazy. Only this bag can block the smell.” Countess Ferrier, looking a little tired, handed a bag made of human skin to Count Solari.
Taking the bag, the familiar touch made Count Solari frown, but he didn’t say anything. However, he raised the danger level of the Countess in his mind.
This was definitely not a woman who relied solely on her beauty to get by. He hadn’t expected to discover this side of her after knowing her for so many years. She hid it quite well. If the chaos hadn’t forced her hand, who knows how long she would have kept it hidden.
Count Solari, secretly raising his vigilance, cautiously handed the bag to his most elite squad of cavalry and watched them leave. He knew their chances of returning alive were slim.
Owen naturally knew nothing about this, but he knew it was only a matter of time. Whether it was mutants or schemes in the dark, the territory couldn’t avoid them, so he had made all kinds of preparations early on.
As the first line of defense of the territory, Mara Town was, of course, the first to benefit. The witches often popped out of the fireplace at night and helped with the construction when it was quiet.
Now, Mara Town had a three-meter-high, thick wall that couldn’t be shaken without siege weapons. In addition, sturdy wooden frames and arrow towers were built inside the wall, giving the defending soldiers more advantages. A cannon position was built every certain distance to accommodate artillery.
Mara Town now had a considerable number of cannons. Although the caliber of the one-pounder was really too small, and because it was short-barreled, the range was limited, it was still a cannon after all, especially when firing grapeshot. One shot could clear a whole fan-shaped area.
Most importantly, this thing wasn’t heavy. When moving it, two people could just carry it and run. To put it bluntly, it was a large-scale arquebus.
Being so light and portable, it was most suitable for plugging gaps in defense. However, they still underestimated the impending crisis, or rather, the two Counts had gone too far.
In the wilderness of the Northland, a cavalryman desperately whipped his warhorse, which was already foaming at the mouth. At this moment, he had completely forgotten that it was his closest comrade. Now he only wanted to get as far away from those monsters as possible. Mara Town in the distance was his only hope, but the sudden death of his warhorse turned his hope into despair and even broke his leg.
What made him most desperate was that the human skin bag hanging on his chest was broken, and the turbid flesh and blood inside had already flowed onto his body.
His experiences along the way made him very clear about the allure of this flesh and blood to those monsters. He couldn’t escape.
In the end, the cavalryman went completely mad. He roared frantically and then plunged his dagger into his own heart, freeing his soul.
Kayla, standing on the watchtower, saw this scene through her monocular telescope. Although she didn’t understand what had happened to make the man commit suicide not far from Mara Town, she instinctively sensed that a crisis was coming. So, she raised the alarm while going to find her father.
Correns also didn’t know what had happened, but he could guess. Especially when the huge group of mutants appeared in the distance, he was even more certain that his guess was correct. These mutants were all deliberately lured here.
It didn’t matter who was behind it all. Correns sounded the alarm, and the entire Mara Town entered a state of war readiness. The military colonization camps on the left and right also sounded the battle cry. A great battle was imminent.
