Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 41 Unique Political Work in Another World

Listening to the intermittent shouts from both sides, Morin had already pieced together most of the story in his mind.

These troublemaking Saxon soldiers, like him, were soldiers of the 32nd Infantry Regiment, except they came from the 2nd Battalion.

Like the 1st Battalion, the 2nd Battalion suffered heavy casualties in the previous offensive battles, not only from the barrage of magic crystal cannons but also from attacks by enemy forces with superior numbers.

Their battalion commander, two company commanders, and a large number of officers were killed in action. Now, the highest-ranking officer left in the entire battalion is a captain.

Lacking officer supervision and having just experienced a bloody battle, these soldiers were under immense mental stress, just as Morin had previously analyzed.
In addition, the three field kitchens of the 2nd Battalion were slow to serve meals, which ultimately led these starving soldiers to commit the act of robbing civilian houses.

The soldiers of the National Army and the International Brigades were apparently summoned by the civilians who had escaped.

Upon their arrival, they caught the Saxon soldiers red-handed as they were making a 'zero-dollar purchase'.

Because the soldiers on both sides did not fully understand each other's languages, and were still hot-tempered from the battlefield, they pointed their guns at each other in a moment of excitement.

Now, more and more people are gathering to watch, and a considerable number of Saxon soldiers have also come after hearing the commotion.

But when everyone saw this, they didn't know what to do.

As tensions between the two sides escalated and their fingers were about to land on the trigger, Morin knew he couldn't wait any longer.

The battle in Seville isn't over yet. If they start fighting amongst themselves here, there's no point in continuing.
No one wants their side to lose a battle, especially since he is now an officer of the Saxon Empire and should be in charge of disciplining his soldiers.

So, with the other officers not arriving for a long time, he had to find a way to calm the situation, and the way he handled it had to be impeccable.

We must not allow the conflict between the two sides to escalate further, but we also need to give these local civilians an explanation.

Should we just kill these Saxon soldiers?
This simple and crude method is the quickest way to quell the situation.

But in the long run, this will only exacerbate the conflict, making Saxon soldiers feel bullied by their allies and affecting morale.

We need to change our perspective.

With that thought in mind, Morin no longer hesitated, pushed through the crowd, and strode to the middle of the two dark gun barrels on either side.

When the soldiers of the 2nd Battalion saw a Saxon officer approaching, their faces lit up with joy, thinking that their saviors had arrived.

But to everyone's surprise, Morin didn't say a word, but immediately pushed aside the leading soldier's rifle, his eyes looking so terrifying that he seemed to want to devour people.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

As he spoke, Morin kicked the soldier in the back of the knee from the side, causing him to stagger and lose his balance. The soldier's previous fierce fighting spirit vanished instantly.

The National Army soldiers were stunned, the International Brigades soldiers were stunned, and the Saxon soldiers watching from the sidelines were also stunned.

Even Major Thomas and Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig, who rushed over with their men after hearing the commotion, were stunned when they saw this scene.

The soldier who had been kicked stood up straight, looking incredulous. He hadn't expected that Morin didn't seem to be there to 'protect his own'.

"What are you looking at?!"

Morin glared at the others, then swiftly delivered several kicks to their backs of the knees, causing them to go limp.

"And you all! Put down your guns!"

These kicks completely stunned the rioting soldiers, and none of them put up any resistance, extinguishing the anger in their hearts.

They instinctively lowered their rifles, and the Nationalist Army and International Brigades soldiers who witnessed this also lowered their guns.

Morin breathed a slight sigh of relief; at least the worst-case scenario wouldn't happen for the time being.

He pondered the 'political work skills' he had learned from his predecessors before his transmigration, his mind racing as he modified them into rhetoric with the characteristics of the Saxon Empire in this other world.
Maintaining a dignified expression, Morin stood before the soldiers and spoke.

"I ask you, why have you traveled thousands of miles from the Empire to fight in the Kingdom of Aragon?"

The soldiers lowered their heads, not daring to speak.

"Is it to steal a few pieces of cheese? A few strips of bacon? Is it to point guns at the civilians who saw us as liberators, at the allies who were just shedding blood with us?"

Morin's voice suddenly rose, pointing to the food hanging on their bodies, and then to the National Army and International Brigades soldiers opposite them with complicated expressions.

"When your parents, wives, and children saw you off on the train, didn't they hope you would become heroes and win glory for the empire? Didn't they long for you to return home safely, adorned with medals?!"

"But what are you doing now?! You are tarnishing your military uniforms! You are tarnishing the Black Eagle flag of the Empire! Do you think what you are doing is worthy of the expectations of your families far away? Do you think you are worthy of the comrades who died on the battlefield?!" Every word was like a knife to the heart.

Morin didn't preach any grand principles; his words weren't just for the few soldiers who had made mistakes, but for all the Saxon soldiers around him.

He knew very well that there were many more Saxon soldiers with negative emotions than just these few; they were just the first to express them, so he took this opportunity to suppress the emotions of the others.

Those soldiers who caused the trouble acted impulsively out of fear and hunger.

At this moment, after hearing what Morin said, her mental defenses completely collapsed.

One of the youngest Saxon soldiers, his eyes reddened, burst into tears.

"Sir, we were wrong. We were just too hungry."

We will never dare to do it again.

They hurriedly untied the cheese and bacon strung on their bodies and placed them neatly at the door of the house, then bowed their heads like a group of children who had done something wrong.

Seeing this, Morin's anger subsided considerably.

He turned around, faced the soldiers of the International Brigades and the National Army, and solemnly saluted them.

"My allies, I apologize to you and the affected residents of Seville for the actions of these young soldiers."

He spoke fluent Aragonese, so everyone around him could understand him.

"The Saxon army will deal with them seriously in accordance with relevant military discipline. Please believe that this is just an isolated case. I assure you that we will discipline our troops and never allow similar situations to happen again."

"I believe these soldiers didn't do these things intentionally. Just now, these young men also charged at the enemy's position with bayonets at the ready. Their unit suffered heavy losses, and almost all of their officers were wiped out. This led them to take some extreme actions after the battle."

"I assure you all once again that we will definitely keep our troops under control from now on."

The anger on the faces of the Nationalist Army and International Brigades soldiers around them gradually dissipated.

They were all simple and honest people. Seeing that Morin, a Saxon officer, did not protect these soldiers but instead treated them with such sincerity, and considering that the Saxon soldiers had indeed suffered heavy casualties, their anger had long since subsided.

At that moment, Major Thomas and Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig also walked over at just the right time.

Major Thomas nodded to Maureen, then loudly announced to everyone:

"Just as Lieutenant Morin said, these soldiers will be dealt with according to military discipline! But I also hope that everyone will give them a chance to redeem themselves!"

"And as Lieutenant Morin just emphasized, any violation of Saxon Army discipline or any behavior that undermines our relations with our allies will be punished most severely!"

Morin then translated his words into Aragon and repeated them.

Then, Ludwig added in fluent Aragonese:
"The Saxon Empire, the Aragonese National Army, and the International Brigades are staunch allies. Our common enemy is the Kingdom's army and their Britannian masters. Anyone who tries to undermine this friendship is our enemy."

The statements from the two senior military officers brought this turmoil to a complete close.

The men from the 2nd Battalion quickly arrived and took the dejected soldiers away. These soldiers wouldn't be executed, but they would certainly be punished.

The owner of the house was also asked to come out, and after accepting some Saxefini as compensation, he expressed his forgiveness.

A crisis that could have triggered internal strife was defused by Morin's few words.

After the crowd dispersed, Major Thomas patted Morin on the shoulder, his eyes full of approval.

Ludwig's gaze toward Morin became even more complex, as if he were getting to know Morin all over again.

In addition to inquiry and curiosity, there seemed to be a hint of genuine approval in his eyes.

Even the officers of the International Brigades and the National Army looked at Morin differently.

They all understood that being able to quickly identify the key to the problem in such a chaotic situation and resolve it in the most effective way was something that an ordinary young officer could not do.

However, before everyone could fully recover from the commotion, a messenger rode up on horseback, dismounted, and nimbly ran to Thomas and Ludwig.

"Urgent military situation! Major General Paul orders all officers of battalion level and above to immediately proceed to the city command post for a meeting! Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig, you are also required to attend."

(End of this chapter)