Chapter 869: Friction

Still talking, Pabos and Harry make their way out of the city.

They are about to head back to camp when they see a dozen or so members of Warmflow City's Military Police Unit hurrying east.

Curious, Pabos sends his guard captain to ask what is happening.

Apparently, some Mobile Strike Group soldiers have had a dispute with a noble to the east.

"Sir, I'll have someone take you back," Pabos tells Harry. "I'll go and see what's happened."

Harry shakes his head. "Let's go together. I hardly ever get to come out. Going back this early would waste the day off."

A little over half an hour later, they reach a place twenty kilometers southeast of Warmflow City.

This area, known as Advance Fort, was once a supply-transfer point for Ogiro's invasion of Lumir.

The war had brought crowds of people here, and trade of every kind had flourished.

After that war ended, this tract of several dozen square kilometers was granted to a newly elevated baron.

The new baron, Nakala, used the old military depot and supply fort to build a rather ill-conceived fortress.

The area could have prospered, but two bridges were built near Warmflow City.

Those bridges made Advance Fort far less useful as a transit point. Its trade visibly declined.

Had the Calamity War not broken out, prompting Ogiro to resume sending supplies to its new territory and using this place as a stopover, even Military Honors Town within the fief might have disappeared.

Military Honors Town was called Supply Town before it was renamed after the earlier war.

The war economy has brought the town back to life, helped especially by the spending of Mobile Strike Group soldiers on leave.

The Fifth and Sixth Warbands are particularly well represented among the visitors.

Their men come from Ogiro and prefer Military Honors Town to Warmflow City.

The Ogiro Kingdom maintains a Military Affairs Office here, mainly to arrange stopovers for the kingdom's military supplies in transit.

The office also handles correspondence. Every week, a detachment of riders passes through with urgent military dispatches.

Soldiers from the two Ogiro warbands use the opportunity to send letters home with the dispatch riders.

Their two commanders even made a special application to the kingdom's Department of Military Affairs and secured permission.

The men don't expect the service for nothing, either. Besides paying a few silver coins, they show their appreciation in other ways.

They often bring small gifts for the local office's staff.

Only Peace Haven's numbered legions can match the Mobile Strike Group's weapons and equipment.

Items other legions consider rarities are standard issue here.

The annual issue alone is beyond what other legions would dare dream of: eight pairs of military boots, four everyday uniforms, and four combat uniforms.

The clothes and boots all come from Peace Haven's military factories, and the quality is excellent.

Apart from Peace Haven's troops and the elite formations of the various nations, no other force even issues jerky and sugar cubes.

The Mobile Strike Group is very well provided for.

Every year, the Western Federation pays Peace Haven extraordinary materials worth more than three million gold coins just to supply the group.

That comes to more than thirty gold coins per soldier per year, before any combat expenditure.

With that much money, any country could train and fully equip a capable soldier.

But the Mobile Strike Group is necessary. It is a demonstration of political trust and a way to put joint military operations into practice.

The earlier performance of Pabos's warband and the other two has shown the strategic value of this force, built from selected elite troops at such expense.

The surrounding communities are happy to welcome soldiers on leave.

They come with money to spend.

Men looking for women avoid Warmflow City and its Military Police Unit. Instead, they have to visit out-of-the-way towns like this one.

Even here, they keep quiet and take care. They would rather spend more than cause trouble.

With the Military Police Unit here now, they won't be able to come to this town for entertainment so freely anymore.

Pabos frowns the moment he reaches the town.

Several dozen soldiers from the group face off against a local noble's private troops. Half the group's men hold swords or sabers.

The noble's soldiers lie groaning on the ground. The weapons in the group's hands clearly belong to the noble's private troops.

Apparently, a dispute broke out, the private troops came to make arrests, and the group's soldiers fought back and seized their weapons.

Their comrades hurried over to help as soon as word reached them.

The local noble cavalry also arrived and surrounded them.

Both sides have wounded men, but the nobles' side has more of them.

The group has a good proportion of professionals in its ranks. Seven or eight are among the men surrounded here.

They had come out without weapons because they were on leave.

With a weapon at hand, anger can turn all too easily into violence.

That is why men on leave go unarmed, lest a moment's anger end in bloodshed and death.

The noble forces facing them have only two Knights, but they have horses, armor, and more men.

Each side has reason to be wary of the other. Neither dares attack.

Even the Military Police Unit's shouted orders fail to make either side put down its weapons. They merely pull farther apart.

Pabos's face darkens. He urges his horse forward. "All of you, put away your weapons! Soldiers of the group, hand yours over!"

Only then do the surrounded soldiers turn and see Pabos in the street.

When no one moves, he raises an eyebrow. "What's this? My orders mean nothing just because I'm not your warband commander?"

"Must I fetch your commander and have him give you the order in person? Are you that important?"

The group's soldiers hastily put down their weapons.

They all recognize the young general. None considers him a useless figurehead or some incompetent fool here to pad his credentials.

"State your units and posts," Pabos says sternly.

"Sixth Warband, Third Combat Battalion..."

"Sixth Warband, First Combat Battalion..."

"Recorded," Pabos says. "Those directly involved in the original dispute stay here. Everyone else, run back to camp and explain yourselves to the Military Justice Office!"

Looking uneasy, the soldiers salute, form up, and jog back to camp. A few anxious men remain.

Pabos leaves them alone and turns to the group's soldiers watching nearby. "Didn't you hear me tell you to state your units?"

The spectators' faces freeze. The few men from Peace Haven, in particular, know they are in trouble.

"First Warband, Second Combat Battalion..."

"Seventh Warband, Second Combat Battalion..."

"Tenth Warband, Fourth Combat Battalion..."

"Third Warband, First Combat Battalion..."

Pabos looks grim. "Your comrades are in trouble, and you stand here watching the show? Have you no loyalty to one another?"

"If this is how you behave, how can anyone trust you to guard his back on the battlefield?"

"All of you, run back to camp. Fifteen lashes each. Report to the military judge, explain why you're there, and tell him the order came from me!"

The soldiers jog out of town, grimacing at the punishment ahead. One of the noble Knights sneers. "Well, young man. Neatly done!"

"A few words, and all the criminals walk free. There are limits to protecting your own. You owe us an explanation!"

Pabos's anger flares again, barely having subsided. He looks at the Knight. "I ordered everyone to put away their weapons!"

"Didn't you hear me? Why are your bows and crossbows still raised and your swords drawn? Do you want to be punished too?"