Chapter 220: The Brigand Act (1/2)

The following day Berengar proclaimed the realm of Austria as he passed a controversial law into effect within the entirety of the domain. This law was known as the Brigand Act, and by the time the southern Lords realized it was nothing more than a ruse it would be too late.

”I, Count Berengar von Kufstein, Regent of the Duchy of Austria hereby declare the signing of the Brigand Act into law. Under this act, the soldiers of the Austrian Army, currently comprised of the various units from Tyrol, will be stationed throughout the Counties of Austria to ensure that the plethora of brigands, bandits, highwaymen, and other ruffians who have appeared within our realm since the destruction brought upon it by the Bavarian occupation shall be brought to justice!”

With that said, the Austrian Army, which was simply the Tyrolean Army rebranded under Berengar's regency, was immediately deployed to the regions most afflicted with brigands, that being the counties most likely to rebel against Berengar's transition to power.

Willehelm Krieger stared at the notice in his hands as he rode on horseback towards the region known as Kustenland. This region which was also known as the Austrian Littoral was critical to Berengar's plans to develop a Grand Navy.

Willehelm was a young man of common descent; his father was a man-at-arms like his father before him. He was one of the first men to join Berengar's Army; back during the days when it was considered a militia. He was one of the few members of the Officer class to come from common birth. Through his actions in Bernegar's various campaigns, he had risen to the rank of Captain and was currently leading an effort to eliminate out a group of Brigands who had been occupying a village.

The unit he was in command of was mounted infantry, and they had become at the forefront of the fight against the Brigands in southern Austria. Due to their rapid mobility and exceptional firepower, mounted infantry was one of the most deployed units to combat the ruffians who had been causing trouble for the south. As for the rest of the infantry, cavalry, and artillery units they occupied the cities, towns, and ports of southern Austria. Their total numbers were within the thousands.

Willehelm and his company of soldiers approached the village and noticed that a crude barrier had been set up around it. The brigands who had taken over the town had been using it as their hideout. Seeing that they were still a safe distance away, the troops dismounted before proceeding on foot.

At the moment, an extensive fog filled the air, making it very difficult to see a few yards in front of one's location. Thus they went unnoticed by the brigands who were currently enjoying the dawn by drinking, feasting, and abusing the women and girls of the village that they had occupied. The few men stationed in the poorly constructed watchtowers had no idea that a company of soldiers was advancing onto their position.

The mounted infantry got on top of a hill overlooking the settlement, where a soldier took out his spyglass and surveyed the area; he quickly noticed that there were only half a dozen men on guard. As for the others, it was impossible to know their numbers. However, these ruffians were poorly equipped and could easily be handled. Thus the soldiers began to load their rifled muskets before approaching the palisade on the north side.

After approaching the area, the sappers embedded with the company began to place TNT along with three positions, where they quickly fell back to a safe distance before detonating the explosive compound. A booming echo went off, and the north side of the barrier was turned into shrapnel, as such Willehelm gave the order to fire upon the dizzy and confused ruffians who acted as guards.

Immediately dozens of rifled muskets went off at the six targets, and the minie ball projectiles quickly penetrated through the flesh of the brigands. Large holes appeared in their chests and abdomens as blood sprayed in the air and onto the ground below.

Those who had fired their muskets quickly began to reload, and due to the use of the quick loading tubes they had been provided with, it was a much swifter process than it had been previously. As such, the company of soldiers was fully loaded in a matter of seconds.

Hearing the explosive blast and the sound of firearms being shot off, the brigands who hid within the settlement quickly began to flee from the buildings they were in; they knew their lives were in peril because the Austrian Army was here to deal with them, and they had no intention of sticking around to fight it out.

However, the moment they got into the open, Willehelm gave another order to his soldiers.

”pick your targets and fire at will!”

Thus while perched on the hill above, the company of soldiers fired their rifled muskets into the village below, targeting any man who wielded a weapon in their hands. Before long, those cowardly enough to flee the town were all gunned down, and Willehelm blew his whistle signaling the men to fix bayonets and charge into the settlement.

While the Austrian soldiers charged into the village with bayonets affixed, they immediately came into contact with another wave of brigands, and unleashed their fire upon them, before running them through with their bayonets.

After a brief and bloody scene, most of the bandits were killed and the brigand leader revealed himself. He had a young woman as a hostage and held a blade to her throat as he began to make his demands to the Austrian soldiers who had encircled him.

”Not a step closer! I'm warning you; I will cut this bitches throat!”

Seeing the brigand so close to killing the hostage, Willehelm quickly gave a command to his forces.

”Halt!”